0000000000324651
AUTHOR
Maria Cassata
A case-control study of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
A retrospective case-control study was conducted using 46 patients affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and 92 closely matched healthy controls. Cases were ascertained through typical clinical and instrumental findings. Putative risk factors (bone fractures or major trauma, exposure to domestic animals, surgical operations, disease among first degree relatives and others) were investigated anamnestically using a standard questionnaire. Using Mantel-Haenzsel estimates of the odds ratio, no association was found between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and the investigated variables.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Palermo, Italy: an epidemiological study
The incidence, prevalence and natural course of ALS were determined in the population of the province of Palermo, Italy. The average annual incidence calculated for the years 1973 through 1984, was 044./100.000 inhabitants. The prevalence rate on prevalence day December 31, 1984, was 1.67/100.000 population. The male/female ratio was 1.38. The mean age at onset was 54.3±11.02. The most common clinical form was the conventional one (61.4%); the bulbar form was more frequent among females than males. The mean duration of the disease was 33.7±35.8 months. The longest duration belongs to the pseudopolyneuritic form. The median survival was 36 months: 16 months for the bulbar, 36 months for the …