For many people living with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), saying ‘I love you’ to a partner or child is impossible. ALS is a progressive neurological disease that leads to complete paralysis. Early symptoms involve weakness in the arms or legs as well as slurred speech or difficulty swallowing.
“One in four people already have speech impairment when they are diagnosed,” says David Brandman, co-director of the Neuroprosthetics Lab and a neurosurgeon at the University of California-Davis.
As the speech paralysis progresses, patients cannot ask for help, pose questions, or even thank the people helping them with day-to-day living.
There isn’t a cure for ALS, and patients typically only live for three to five years after diagnosis. But scientists recently had a major breakthrough with a computer interface that holds promise to help ALS patients live a better quality of life — by giving them back their voice.
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