Results of radiotherapy for drooling in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Drooling or sialorrhea is a common problem in patients with ALS. Treatment aims to reduce saliva production, such as anticholinergic drugs, botulinum toxin, surgery, and radiotherapy.1-3⇓⇓ Suppression of saliva production occurs after moderate radiation dose of 10 to 20 Gy in 2 Gy daily fractions.4 Radiotherapy of saliva glands has been used for nonmalignant disease.5,6⇓ We reviewed results of radiotherapy for drooling in 19 adult patients with ALS treated between March 1995 and January 1999. There were 10 men and 9 women; the average time from diagnosis of ALS was 8.6 months. All …