

Progressive neurological disorders, such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), pose a great challenge to Assistive Technology (AT) selection. In fact, as the disease progresses, the patient needs for AT support change and assistive technology devices can soon become of no use to the patient. To assist professionals in the selection of AT devices for Communication, a table that suggests commercially available technologies appropriate to each stage of ALS is presented. This instrument provides a guideline for technology selection, taking into consideration the disease progression. However, it does not substitute a thorough patient assessment, and it does not consider user preferences. The main purpose of developing such a table is to bring into the assistive technology selection process not only the ALS patient present needs but also the envisioned future needs. Prescribing AT with these concerns has the potential to reduce the need to substitute devices as the disease progresses, releasing the patient from the effort to adapt to a different technology and avoiding the usually long time interval before getting a new device, during which the person stays with no useful AT support.