ALS Treatment: What Works, What Doesn’t, and What’s New

When someone is diagnosed with ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks nerve cells controlling muscle movement. Also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, it slowly steals the ability to move, speak, eat, and breathe. There’s no cure—but treatment isn’t just about waiting. It’s about slowing decline, managing symptoms, and keeping quality of life as high as possible for as long as possible.

Riluzole, the first FDA-approved drug for ALS, works by reducing glutamate damage to motor neurons. It doesn’t reverse damage, but studies show it can extend survival by a few months. Then came edaravone, an antioxidant infusion that may slow functional decline in early-stage patients. These aren’t magic bullets, but they’re the only two drugs with solid clinical backing. Many patients also use muscle relaxants, like baclofen or tizanidine, to ease painful spasms, or feeding tubes, to maintain nutrition when swallowing becomes unsafe. These aren’t glamorous, but they’re the tools that keep people out of the hospital and in their homes longer.

What’s missing from most headlines? The real daily work of ALS treatment. It’s not just pills. It’s speech therapists helping with communication devices, physical therapists adjusting braces to prevent joint stiffness, and respiratory therapists setting up non-invasive ventilation before breathing fails. It’s families learning how to reposition someone safely, or caregivers tracking subtle changes in strength or speech to warn doctors before crisis hits. The posts below cover what actually matters: how drug interactions affect people on multiple meds, why some meds cause confusion in older patients, how to avoid dangerous side effects from antibiotics or statins, and how to spot early signs of trouble before they become emergencies. You won’t find hype here—just clear, practical info from people who’ve lived it, studied it, or helped manage it.