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Steven J. Zuckerman, MD; Michael A. Pesce, MD; Lewis P. Rowland, MD; W. Sherman, MD; Michael E. Shy, MD; N. Latov, MD, PhD; Elliott F. Osserman, MD
Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center New York, NY 10032

Arch Neurol. 1987;44(3):250-251.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.

—We write to alert neurologists about a problem in laboratory diagnosis. Monoclonal paraproteinemia, or monoclonal gammopathy, a form of plasma cell dyscrasia, seems to be found with inordinate frequency in patients with peripheral neuropathy^1-3 and motor neuron diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.⁴ The condition is defined by the identification of a monoclonal immunoglobulin in the serum (M protein).

In the United States, electrophoresis on cellulose acetate is commonly used to separate the serum proteins, which are then stained. The gel is

Quantitative Analysis of Immunoglobulins Diagnosis IgG, mg/dL (g/L) IgA, mg/dL (g/L) IgM, mg/dL (g/L) Immunofixation Electrophoresis Paraprotein Normal range 700-1700 (7.00-12.00) 70-350 (0.70-3.50) 50-300 (0.50-3.00) Motor neuron disease 652 (6.52) 82 (0.82) 518 (5.18) IgMK Neuropathy 1120 (11.20) 285 (2.85) 155 (1.55) IgA Motor neuron disease 1050 (10.50) 361 (3.61) 107 (1.07) IgAK scanned with a densitometer and the curves are inspected visually; . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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