The nurse is caring for a patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Which of the following findings would indicate that the patient is in the last stages of the disease?

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Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed. Symptoms are based on the stage of the disease and include cramping, muscle stiffness, muscle weakness affecting a specific limb, slurred and nasal speech, muscle atrophy, spasticity, dysphagia, depression, anxiety, and paralysis. Fluid-volume overload, cardiac arrhythmia, and hypertension are not symptoms of this disease.

The Nurse Is Caring for a Patient with Amyotrophic Lateral