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Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1970 Jun;33(3):338–357. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.33.3.338

The central nervous system in motor neurone disease

Betty Brownell 1,1, D R Oppenheimer 1, J Trevor Hughes 1
PMCID: PMC493478  PMID: 5431724

Abstract

Forty-five necropsied cases with primary degeneration of lower motor neurones are described and discussed. Of these, 36 are considered to be `typical' cases of motor neurone disease, eight of which showed no upper motor neurone lesions. The relation of the nine `atypical' cases to the remainder is discussed. It is concluded that motor neurone disease constitutes an ill-defined band in a broad spectrum of multiple system atrophies. The authors have found no evidence suggesting a causal relation between motor neurone disease and either vascular or malignant diseases. They point out suggestive analogies with various subacute encephalomyelopathies in man and other animals.

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Selected References

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