Riluzole is currently the only medication approved by regulatory authorities for the treatment of ALS, including Europe, the USA, and Australia (Orrell 2010).
Riluzole is an anti-glutamate medication manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis under the name Rilutek™. Riluzole appears to block the release of glutamate from nerve cells (neurones).
Riluzole is safe and effective for slowing disease progression to a modest degree in ALS (Miller and others 2009a). It helps people remain in the milder or moderately affected stages of the disease for longer than those not taking riluzole, if they start on the medication early in the disease progression (Miller and others 2007).
Riluzole remains the only medication to have shown benefit which has stood up to the methodology of the Cochrane review process (Orrell 2010).
