ALS Untangled Series: Ep. 45 - Ketogenic Diets

Dr. Caroline McHutchison is a Neuropsychologist and CReATe Clinical Research Scholar at the University of Edinburgh and Dr. Michael Benatar is a Professor of Neurology and Chief of the Neuromuscular Division and Executive Director of the ALS Center at the University of Miami. They will be discussing their recent publication “Temporal course of cognitive and behavioural changes in motor neuron diseases”.

Dr. Chad Heatwole is a Professor of Neurology and the Director of the Center for Health and Technology at the University of Rochester Medical Center and Dr. Michael Benatar is a Professor of Neurology and Chief of the Neuromuscular Division and Executive Director of the ALS Center at the University of Miami. They will be discussing their recent publication “The amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-health index (ALS-HI): development and evaluation of a novel outcome measure” and its role as a patient reported outcome measure for ALS.

Sodium chlorite is an experimental drug targeting macrophage activation. It exists in different formulations. An oral formulation has potentially deadly side effects. An IV formulation called NP001 has been in recent trials targeting a subset of people with ALS. Here we review the interesting development of this product and where we expect that to go in the near future.

Rituximab is an intravenous product that reduces B lymphocytes. It can help improve strength in patients with myasthenia gravis and multi-focal motor neuropathy, neuromuscular diseases that are caused by circulating antibodies made by B lymphocytes. In this podcast we examine the possible use of rituximab to treat patients with ALS

Ozone is an oxidizing agent which has some surprisingly plausible mechanisms by which it could influence ALS progression. It can also be dangerous. The FDA has warned against using it as a treatment for any disease. Further studies are needed to determine whether there is any dose or route of administration that might be safe and effective for use in people with ALS.

Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring chemical which has plausible mechanisms for treating ALS and appears reasonably safe and well tolerated in non-ALS trials. We look forward to ALS-specific trials planned later this year which should shed important light on whether this is specifically safe for people with ALS, and whether it really can slow ALS progression.

Dr. Martin Turner is a Professor of Clinical Neurology & Neurosciences at the University of Oxford and Dr. Michael Benatar is a Professor of Neurology and Chief of the Neuromuscular Division and Executive Director of the ALS Center at the University of Miami. They will be discussing their recent publication “Neurofilament light chain in drug development for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a critical appraisal”, and the potential role of NfL as a biomarker for ALS. This is part I of a two part series.

Dr. Martin Turner is a Professor of Clinical Neurology & Neurosciences at the University of Oxford and Dr. Michael Benatar is a Professor of Neurology and Chief of the Neuromuscular Division and Executive Director of the ALS Center at the University of Miami. They will be discussing their recent publication “Neurofilament light chain in drug development for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a critical appraisal”, and the potential role of NfL as a biomarker for ALS. This is part II of a two part series.

There is a theorized association between mycobacteria and ALS, and two published case reports described improvements in ALS-like conditions (both with atypical features) after treatment with antimycobacterial antibiotics. Here we review these in detail and discuss our thoughts on how they might change our approach in certain patients in the future.

Corticosteroids are a class of medications with well-studied effects on the immune system and some people living with ALS have reported benefits from them online. Here we review the pre-clinical and clinical data. We conclude that there is currently no clear evidence that steroids can slow ALS progression, and they can have many side effects.