Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

The ALS Center at Ochsner provides complete care for people with ALS and similar conditions. Our team includes experts from different fields who work together to create custom care plans for each patient.

Our center is modeled after the national guidelines for care that have been developed by the ALS Association of America. In addition, we collaborate with the Louisiana-Mississippi Chapter of ALSA.

The Ochsner ALS Center has been designated as a Certified Treatment Center of Excellence through the ALS Association's Certified Center Program.

Our team consists of:

• A neurologist
• Advanced practice providers
• Licensed clinical social worker
• Pulmonologist
• Speech language pathologist
• Physical therapist
• Occupational therapist
• Dietician
• Respiratory therapist

We are here to make life easier for people with ALS and their families. Our ALS Center is about giving you the best care possible in one convenient location.

Before your appointment, your ALS coordinator or advanced practice nurse will check in with you to talk about your symptoms and plan the care you need. Our compassionate team sees ALS patients every three months, ensuring you get the consistent care and attention you deserve.

Our center provides patients access to clinical trials.

New patients often have already been evaluated by a neurologist and may have been told that they have ALS or another neuromuscular disease. ALS Center neurologists have extensive training in the diagnosis and treatment of neuromuscular disease and conduct an initial evaluation of each patient. Diagnosing ALS requires physical and neurological examinations and a variety of tests to rule out other problems. The team at the ALS Center is here to offer diagnoses as well as second opinions.

Testing Available:

• Blood and urine tests – Helps your doctor eliminate other possible causes of symptoms.
• Electromyogram (EMG) – Evaluates the electrical activity of your muscles when they contract and when at rest.
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – Produces detailed images of the brain and spinal cord.
• Muscle biopsy – Test to determine if you have a muscle disease other than ALS.
• Nerve conduction study – Measures your nerves' ability to send impulses to muscles in different areas of your body.
• Spinal tap – A a sample of your spinal fluid to look for infections or other issues

While there is no cure for ALS, Ochsner provides treatments to help you live a productive and independent life for as long as possible. What’s more, our patients have access to future treatments through clinical trials.

Therapies/Treatments Available:

• Pulmonary therapy
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Speech therapy
• Nutritional support
• Emotional support

Medications

Rilutek is the only medication currently approved by the FDA to slow the progression of ALS. Our team may prescribe additional medications to address the symptoms such as constipation, depression, excessive salivation and/or phlegm, fatigue, muscle cramps and spasms, uncontrolled outbursts of laughing or crying, sleep difficulties and spasticity.

Radicava (edaravone) is a treatment option for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) that was shown to slow decline in the loss of physical function. Learn more.

Here When You Need Us

The ALS Center is located within the Ochsner Center for Primary Care and Wellness at 1401 Jefferson Highway, just across the street on the north side of Ochsner Medical Center - New Orleans on Jefferson Highway. Convenient, free parking is available.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a debilitating motor neuron disease that affects patients’ ability to move, speak and breathe. The Ochsner Medical Student Association ALS Voice Banking Project is dedicated to helping patients with ALS and their loved ones. The Ochsner Voice Banking Program was established as a way to record and preserve the voices of those diagnosed with ALS, after the ability to speak is lost. Please continue reading to learn how you can help us continue to achieve our mission: to save the voices of patients diagnosed with ALS.

We are a group of students from University of Queensland School of Medicine - Ochsner Clinical School who are dedicated to helping community members with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Our project helps record the voices of patients with ALS before they lose the ability to speak using ModelTalker software. We also work to raise funds and awareness to cover the cost of voice recording/creation of a synthetic voice for our patients.

The Ochsner Voice Banking Program is a volunteer initiative that was developed in 2016 and is run by students from the University of Queensland – Ochsner Clinical School. The medical students help people with ALS by recording their voices in a specialized audiology booth. Once recorded, the voices are sent to the software manufacturer, ModelTalker, which synthesizes each voice for future use on any computer device through typed commands.

ModelTalker is the incredible software company that creates synthetic voices for our patients. They have created a program of 1600 phrases that the patient reads, and we record. Once all of the phrases have been recorded, they are analyzed for quality and broken up into sounds and syllables to allow patients to form unique and original speech using their final synthetic voice. ModelTalker software is compatible with multiple systems and voice interface technology options.

Learn more.

Interested in having your voice recorded?

Our students are happy to schedule an appointment with you! Contact us at ALSVoiceBanking@ochsner.org if you are interested in making a voice banking appointment for yourself or a loved one.

Appointments are typically available 8 a.m., 10 a.m. and noon on Saturdays and Sundays at Ochsner Medical Center, 1514 Jefferson Highway, New Orleans. There is also availability at our Ochsner Covington location on Saturday mornings. If you are unable to make it to either of our approved locations but you would still like to record your voice, please let us know! We may be able to accommodate alternative recording locations on a case-by-case basis. Unfortunately, at this time we are unable to provide transportation.

Recording sessions can last for up to two hours each, and patients typically require anywhere from four to eight recording sessions to complete the program.

ALSVoiceBanking@ochsner.org

You can make a difference.

Your donation allows us to raise money for patents for people with ALS to go toward the costs of voice recording and making a synthetic voice. If you would like to make a donation, please select "Support the Neuroscience Center of Excellence: ALS Innovation." Please email us at ALSVoiceBanking@ochsner.org if you have made a donation, so we can ensure that the funds are properly allocated.

If you are unable to monetarily contribute to the Ochsner ALS Voice Banking Project, consider donating your own voice! While patient recording is our priority, you can donate your own voice by recording your own 1600 phrase voice bank, just like our patients. ModelTalker uses these donated voices for research, continuous program improvement, and for patients who are unable to record their own voice. For more details, visit here..

ALS, or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting brain and spinal cord nerve cells. Over time, it leads to the loss of muscle control, impacting a person's ability to move, speak, eat, and breathe. Each year, nearly 5,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS.

ALS stands for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. The term comes from Greek words meaning "no muscle nourishment." This refers to the failure of nerve cells, leading to muscle weakening. Because of its prominence in history, ALS is also called Lou Gehrig's Disease, named after the famous baseball player who was diagnosed in 1939.

While there is no cure for ALS, treatments focus on slowing the disease's progression, managing symptoms, and improving quality of life. At Ochsner's ALS Center, patients can access a quality care team and physical, occupational, speech, and pulmonary therapies. Medications like Rilutek and Radicava are used to slow progression or manage symptoms. The center also offers access to clinical trials for future treatment options.