• Vivian E Drory and Ditza Gross.
• Department of Neurology and ALS Clinic, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel. emgunit@tasmc.health.gov.il
• Amyotroph. Lateral Scler. Other Motor Neuron Disord. 2002 Mar 1; 3 (1): 43-6.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of creatine supplementation on the respiratory function of patients with advanced amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).MethodsFive grams creatine daily were administered orally to 14 patients with definite advanced ALS. For comparison we used a group of 13 patients with a similar respiratory function. All patients performed pulmonary function testing including forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume (FEV(1)), peak expiratory flow rate (PEF) and maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV) -- expressed as percent of the predicted value -- at baseline and each month thereafter.ResultsThere was no significant difference in any measured variable between the treatment group and the control group at 1, 2, 3 and 4 months follow-up. Thereafter the high patient drop-out rate did not allow statistical evaluation.ConclusionThe present study did not show any clinically significant, long-term effect of creatine on the function of respiratory muscles in ALS patients with respiratory distress.

19 keywords...

hide…