L. O'Brien's Case Study: K. T. and ALS

    K.T. was diagnosed with ALS in May of 2010.  He began seeing signs in his left hand when he was 41.  Lauren said numerous football players have been diagnosed with ALS due to the trauma from playing.  When K.T. was diagnosed he and his wife got a divorce and he moved in with his parents.  The case study revolved around what K.T. was experiencing when he was in stage 3 of ALS. He had lost upper extremity function and his breathing worsened at this point.  He utilized an AAC device and several home modifications.  K.T. lived 5 years with ALS.
    I enjoyed learning about ALS from this case study because we were able to hear about it from a personal perspective. K.T. was a friend of Lauren's family, so she knew more details.  His diagnoses enabled him to create a foundation for ALS and TBI awareness. I visited the website and it is hopefully igniting an awareness of severe injury in the football community.