Table 1.
Major clinical studies supporting sensory involvement in ALS.
| Type of Sensory Neuron | Dysfunction | Number of Patients with ALS | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median nerve | Attenuation of postsynaptic high-frequency somatosensory evoked potential bursts in patients with ALS with a long duration of the disease. | 20 | [73] |
| Sensory system | A total of 14.7% of patients with ALS have damaged sensory systems. | 150 | [62] |
| Sensory cortex | Sensory cortex overexcitation is associated with shorter survival in patients with ALS. | 145 | [71] |
| Intraepidermal nerve fibres | Decreased intraepidermal nerve fibres density with aggregation of TDP-43 in patients with ALS. | 18 | [74] |
| Epidermal nerve fibres | Loss of intraepidermal nerve fibres. | 41 | [60] |
| Intraepidermal nerve fibres | Increased axonal expansion rate and negative growth-related proteins in intraepidermal nerve fibres. |
32 | [58] |
| Intraepidermal nerve fibres | In 85% of patients with ALS, quantitative sensory testing showed abnormal thermal pain thresholds and skin biopsies showed decreased intraepidermal nerve fibre density. | 24 | [75] |
| Ascending sensory fibres | Anatomical damage to ascending sensory fibres in 60% of patients with solitary ALS. |
21 | [76] |
| Leg sensory nerve | A total of 27% of patients with ALS had abnormal action potential. Amplitude, and 91% had pathological abnormalities of the leg sensory nerve. |
103 | [56] |
| Sensory neuron in sural | Sensory neuropathy and axonal degeneration. | 5 | [77] |
| Median, radial, and sural nerves | Asymptomatic decline in sensory nerve function. | 19 | [67] |
| Sensory nerves | Early axonal atrophy, increased remyelination, and predominance of smaller fibre diameters. | [78] |
ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; TDP-43, TAR DNA-binding protein 43.