Variation in worldwide incidence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a meta-analysis

Publication
Affiliates	Benoît Marin [1,2,3,4,5,6], Farid Boumdiene [1,2,3], Giancarlo Logroscino [5,6], Philippe Couratier [1,2,7], Marie-Claude Babron [8,9], Anne Louise Leutenegger [8,9] Massimilano Copetti [10], Pierre-Marie Preux [1,2,3], and Ettore Beghi [4] [1] INSERM, U1094, Tropical Neuroepidemiology [2] Univ. Limoges, UMR_S 1094, Tropical Neuroepidemiology, Institute of Neuroepidemiology and Tropical Neurology [3] CHU Limoges, Centre d’Epide´miologie de Biostatistique et de Me´ thodologie de la Recherche [4] Laboratorio di Malattie Neurologiche, IRCCS Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri [5] Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, University of Bari ‘Aldo Moro’ [6] Unit of Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Bari ‘Aldo Moro’, at ‘Pia Fondazione Cardinale G. Panico’ [7] CHU Limoges, Service de Neurologie [8] INSERM UMR 946, Genetic Variability and Human Diseases [9] University Paris Diderot, UMR 946 [10] Unit of Biostatistics, IRCCS ‘Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza’
Journal	International Journal of Epidemiology
Summary	To estimate the overall pooled worldwide crude ALS incidence, 44 studies were selected, covering 45 geographical areas in 11 sub-continents. Differences in ALS incidence rate estimates were identified between North Europe and East Asia or South Asia. However, incidence rates were similar for those in Europe, North America, and New Zealand. This review confirms a heterogeneous distribution worldwide of ALS and sets the scene to sustain a collaborative study involving a wide international consortium to investigate the link between ancestry, environment, and ALS incidence.
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