ALS
Abbreviation with 2 meanings
| Stands for | Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 2 |
| Categories | Medical |
ALS has two meanings. It stands for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (neurology) or Advanced life support (emergency medicine).
Meanings of ALS at a glance
| # | ALS stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis | Medical › Neurology |
| 2 | Advanced life support | Medical › Emergency Medicine |
1. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Medical · Neurology Abbreviations
Progressive, fatal neurodegenerative disease that destroys upper and lower motor neurons, causing increasing weakness, muscle wasting, twitching, swallowing and speech problems, and eventually breathing failure. Average survival is about two to five years from symptom onset, though some people live much longer.
Example: Fasciculations, tongue atrophy and brisk reflexes with EMG denervation in three regions: ALS.
Called Lou Gehrig's disease in the US after the baseball player who retired in 1939 and died of it in 1941. About 10 percent of cases are familial, most often from C9orf72 or SOD1 gene variants. Approved treatments include riluzole, edaravone and, for SOD1-related ALS, tofersen (2023). The 2014 Ice Bucket Challenge raised over 100 million dollars for research. In emergency medicine ALS means advanced life support.
2. Advanced life support
Medical · Emergency Medicine Abbreviations
Level of prehospital and resuscitation care beyond basic life support, including cardiac monitoring, defibrillation decisions, IV or intraosseous access, advanced airways and medications. In EMS it usually means a paramedic-staffed unit.
Example: ALS intercept requested for chest pain with ST elevation on 12-lead.
Ambulance billing distinguishes BLS and ALS levels of service. Some systems use tiered response, sending ALS only to higher-acuity calls. In neurology ALS means amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a completely different meaning.
Related abbreviations
More neurology abbreviations
- AD – Alzheimer's disease
- ADEM – Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis
- AED – Antiepileptic drug
- AIS – Acute ischemic stroke
- AMS – Altered mental status
- ASIA – American Spinal Injury Association
- ASM – Antiseizure medication
- ASPECTS – Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score
See all 131 neurology abbreviations →
More emergency medicine abbreviations
- ABCs – Airway, breathing, circulation
- ACEP – American College of Emergency Physicians
- ACLS – Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support
- AMA – Against medical advice
- AMLS – Advanced Medical Life Support
- AND – Allow natural death
- ATLS – Advanced Trauma Life Support
- BIBA – Brought in by ambulance
See all 97 emergency medicine abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.