10.6084/m9.figshare.4585216.v1
Andrew A.S.
Andrew
A.S.
Caller T.A.
Caller
T.A.
Tandan R.
Tandan
R.
Duell E.J.
Duell
E.J.
Henegan P.L.
Henegan
P.L.
Field N.C.
N.C.
Bradley W.G.
Bradley
W.G.
Stommel E.W.
Stommel
E.W.
Supplementary Material for: Environmental and Occupational Exposures and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in New England
Karger Publishers
2017
Environmental exposure
Occupation
Toxicant
Water
2017-01-25 14:39:43
Dataset
https://karger.figshare.com/articles/dataset/Supplementary_Material_for_Environmental_and_Occupational_Exposures_and_Amyotrophic_Lateral_Sclerosis_in_New_England/4585216
<p><b><i>Background:</i></b> Recent data provide support for the concept
that potentially modifiable exposures are responsible for sporadic
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). <b><i>Objective:</i></b> To evaluate environmental and occupational exposures as risk factors for sporadic ALS. <b><i>Methods:</i></b>
We performed a case-control study of ALS among residents of New
England, USA. The analysis compared questionnaire responses from 295
patients with a confirmed ALS diagnosis to those of 225 controls without
neurodegenerative illness. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Self-reported job- or
hobby-related exposure to one or more chemicals, such as pesticides,
solvents, or heavy metals, increased the risk of ALS (adjusted OR 2.51;
95% CI 1.64-3.89). Industries with a higher toxicant exposure potential
(construction, manufacturing, mechanical, military, or painting) were
associated with an elevated occupational risk (adjusted OR 3.95; 95% CI
2.04-8.30). We also identified increases in the risk of ALS associated
with frequent participation in water sports, particularly waterskiing
(adjusted OR 3.89; 95% CI 1.97-8.44). Occupation and waterskiing both
retained independent statistical significance in a composite model
containing age, gender, and smoking status. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b>
Our study contributes to a growing body of literature implicating
occupational- and hobby-related toxicant exposures in ALS etiology.
These epidemiologic study results also provide motivation for future
evaluation of water-body-related risk factors.</p>