In most cases the disease spreads and affects other spinal cord regions. A few people with ALS have symptoms that are limited to one spinal cord region for at least 12 to 24 months before spreading to a second region; these regional variants of ALS are associated with a better prognosis. Classical ALS, PLS, and PMA
ALS can be classified by the types of motor neurons that are affected. Typical or "classical" ALS involves upper motor neurons in the brain and lower motor neurons in the spinal cord. Primary lateral sclerosis (PLS) involves only upper motor neurons, and progressive muscular atrophy (PMA) involves only lower motor neurons. There is debate over whether PLS and PMA are separate diseases or simply variants of ALS.Classic ALS accounts for about 70% of all cases of ALS and can be subdivided into limb-onset ALS (also known as spinal-onset) and bulbar-onset ALS. Limb-onset ALS begins with weakness in the arms and legs and accounts for about two-thirds of all classic ALS cases. Bulbar-onset ALS begins with weakness in the muscles of speech, chewing, and swallowing and accounts for the other one-third of cases. Bulbar onset is associated with a worse prognosis than limb-onset ALS; a population-based study found that bulbar-onset ALS has a median survival of 2.0 years and a 10-year survival rate of 3%, while limb-onset ALS has a median survival of 2.6 years and a 10-year survival rate of 13%.
Names
The drug is marketed in the United States under the trade names Livalo and Zypitamag, and in the European Union and Russia under the trade name Livazo. References
External links
FDA approval history