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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Northern Spain 40 Years Later: What Has Changed?
- Source :
- Neuro-degenerative diseases. 16(5-6)
- Publication Year :
- 2016
-
Abstract
- Background: In the last years different studies have reported an increase of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) incidence, highlighting the role of the environment in this disease. This prompted us to review ALS cases diagnosed at our hospital in the last decade and to compare them with a previous ALS series reported in our region 30 years ago. Methods: We reviewed those ALS cases diagnosed at our centre between 2004 and 2013. Subsequently, we compared them with the previous series regarding clinical and epidemiological features. Results: A total of 53 patients (30 males, 23 females) were included. The annual incidence was 1.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants (2.2 and 1.2 per 100,000 in males and females, respectively), which was significantly higher than in the previous series (1 case per 100,000 inhabitants). Otherwise, the clinical and epidemiological features were similar in both series. The median age at symptom onset was 67 years, with a median diagnosis delay of 6 months. About two thirds of the patients presented with systemic ALS, whereas the remaining had a bulbar onset. Weakness, dysphagia, and dysarthria were the most common clinical symptoms at diagnosis. The median survival from symptom onset was 22 months. Conclusion: After 3 decades, the annual incidence of ALS has almost doubled in our region. We did not find significant differences regarding other clinical or epidemiological features.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
Pediatrics
medicine.medical_specialty
Weakness
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences
Disease
Kaplan-Meier Estimate
Rural Health
01 natural sciences
Annual incidence
03 medical and health sciences
Dysarthria
0302 clinical medicine
Epidemiology
Medicine
Humans
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
0105 earth and related environmental sciences
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
business.industry
Incidence (epidemiology)
Incidence
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Urban Health
Middle Aged
medicine.disease
Dysphagia
Surgery
Neurology
Spain
Female
Neurology (clinical)
medicine.symptom
business
030217 neurology & neurosurgery
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 16602862
- Volume :
- 16
- Issue :
- 5-6
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Neuro-degenerative diseases
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....6b9edf2892cb65f727e7148991eb0805