BSC 2346 Module 7 Case Study Scott, a 37-year-old elementary teacher

Module 7 Case Study

QUESTION 1
Scott, a 37-year-old elementary teacher, is seeing his general practitioner for complaints
of general weakness, especially in his lower extremities. He has also been feeling very
fatigued lately and has trouble keeping up with his students throughout his work day.
His physician notes that he has lost a significant amount of weight in the last 6 months.
Scott reports that even simple tasks, such as brushing his hair and getting dressed, can
seem like a chore. He has trouble climbing stairs because of his weakness and notices
that his speech is slurred, especially at the end of the day.

Scott’s physician uses a tongue depressor during his physical examination and
Scott begins to gag and has difficulty swallowing. His physician notes muscle
wasting and abnormal spasticity in upper and lower extremities bilaterally. All
reflexes are normal except the Babinski reflex. Scott’s toes fan out when the sole
of his feet are stroked with the reflex hammer.

Scott’s symptoms are primarily related to problems with:
Neurons of the autonomic nervous system only
Motor neurons
Sensory neurons
Both sensory and motor neurons

QUESTION 2
Because Scott’s symptoms are progressively getting worse over a period of
several months, we can rule out which of the following diagnoses?
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Multiple Sclerosis
Muscular dystrophy
Traumatic spinal cord hemisection

QUESTION 3
Scott’s physician believes he may have ALS. Briefly describe this condition in your own words.
ALS is a progressive disease that attacks the nerve cells in a person’s brain and spinal cord
which eventually weakens muscle and causes deterioration of physical functions.
Reference
http://www.alsa.org/about-als/what-is-als.html

, QUESTION 4
Which of the following is NOT an early symptom of ALS?
Leg weakness
Fatigue
Difficulty swallowing
Loss of balance

QUESTION 5
What are the major differences between ALS and MS, physiologically?
Describe any pathological differences you find in your research.
ALS is a hereditary disease that affects 1 in 10 people because of mutated protein.
MS is an autoimmune disease that results in mental impairment whereas ALS
results in more of physical impairments.
MS in its late stages is almost never debilitating or leads to death, but ALS
in its late stage is debilitating, can lead to paralysis, and death.
MS is more common in women and ALS is more common
in men. ALS is not an autoimmune disease but MS is
ALS attacks nerve cells while MS attacks the myelin sheath

Reference
https://www.medicinenet.com/als_vs_ms_differences_and_similarities/article.htm#ms_multiple_
sclerosis_vs_als_lou_gehrigs_disease_quick_comparison_of_differences



QUESTION 6
Scott has a positive Babinski reflex. What is the significance of this? What
does a positive Babinski reflex mean in adult patients?
A positive Babinski reflex in an adult helps prove that there is an underlying
nervous system or brain condition that is causing an abnormality in his reflexes.
Reference
https://www.healthline.com/health/babinski-sign


QUESTION 7
ALS stands for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. What does “amyotrophic” mean? What
is happening to the body (physiologically) if it is experience “amyotrophic” changes?
Amyotrophic means “no muscle nourishment” what happens to the body
during amyotrophic is the muscle is not receiving nourishment is begins
to waste away or it “atrophies”
References
http://www.alsa.org/about-als/what-is-als.html
QUESTION 8


ALS stands for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. What is the word “lateral”
referring to in this case?
The neurodegeneration affects the lateral portion of the cerebrum.