Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Feb;18(1-2):32-36.
doi: 10.1080/21678421.2016.1245755. Epub 2016 Dec 15.

National Study of Muscle Cramps in ALS in the USA

Helen E Stephens  1 , Nanette C Joyce  2 , Björn Oskarsson  1
Affiliations

National Study of Muscle Cramps in ALS in the USA

Helen E Stephens et al. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2017 Feb.

Erratum in

  • Erratum.
    [No authors listed] [No authors listed] Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2017 Aug;18(5-6):470. doi: 10.1080/21678421.2017.1344442. Epub 2017 Jun 26. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2017. PMID: 28651439 No abstract available.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to describe muscle cramps in an US sample of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients. Utilizing an anonymous web based questionnaire we queried ALS patients regarding the severity, frequency, time-course, treatment of muscle cramps and their relationship to pain. The survey had 282 respondents with 92% reporting that they had cramps. For 20% of the sample, cramps were stated to be the presenting ALS symptom. Cramp severity was rated at a mean of 5.2/10 and the mean cramp frequency was 5.3 cramps per day. Cramp intensity and frequency did not correlate with duration or severity of ALS. Pain as measured with the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) pain scales was not statistically different from the US general population. Cramp severity and frequency significantly and positively correlated with the PROMIS pain scales. Patients with more severe cramps were more likely to use prescription medications for their cramps compared to patients with milder symptoms. Treatments directed at cramps were tried by 57%. In conclusion, cramps are a common symptom in ALS and it does not correlate with disease duration or severity. The severity of cramps is on average moderate and many patients try treatments.

Keywords: Cramp; patient reported outcome; questionnaire.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure of Interest:

None of the authors have any relevant disclosures.

References

    1. Ringel SP, Murphy JR, Alderson MK, Bryan W, England JD, Miller RG, et al. The natural history of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurology. 1993;43(7):1316–22. - PubMed
    1. Wainger BJ, Kiskinis E, Mellin C, Wiskow O, Han SS, Sandoe J, et al. Intrinsic membrane hyperexcitability of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patient-derived motor neurons. Cell reports. 2014;7(1):1–11. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Fritz E, Izaurieta P, Weiss A, Mir FR, Rojas P, Gonzalez D, et al. Mutant SOD1-expressing astrocytes release toxic factors that trigger motoneuron death by inducing hyperexcitability. Journal of neurophysiology. 2013;109(11):2803–14. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Stephens HE, Lehman E, Raheja D, Yang C, Walsh S, Simmons Z. The role of mental health and self-efficacy in the pain experience of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis & frontotemporal degeneration. 2016:1–7. - PubMed
    1. Caress JB, Ciarlone SL, Sullivan EA, Griffin LP, Cartwright MS. Natural history of muscle cramps in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Muscle Nerve. 2016;53(4):513–7. - PMC - PubMed

Substances