Body Mass Index and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Study of US Military Veterans

Details

• Personal Author:
  Allen KD ; Beard JD ; Bellocco R ; Fang F ; Kamel F ; Keller J ; Mariosa D ; Peters TL ; Sandler DP ; Schmidt S ; Umbach DM ; Ye W
• Description:
  Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may be associated with low body mass index (BMI) at the time of diagnosis. However, the role of premorbid BMI in the development of ALS and survival after diagnosis remains unclear. In 2005-2010, we interviewed 467 patients with ALS from the US National Registry of Veterans with ALS and 975 frequency-matched veteran controls. In this sample, we evaluated the association of BMI and BMI change at different ages with ALS risk using unconditional logistic models and with survival after ALS diagnosis using Cox proportional hazards models. After adjustment for confounders, compared with a moderate increase in BMI between ages 25 and 40 years, stable or decreasing BMI was positively associated with ALS risk (odds ratio (OR) = 1.61, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.20, 2.16). A 1-unit increase in BMI at age 40 years (OR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.91, 0.98) but not at age 25 years (OR = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.95, 1.03) was inversely associated with ALS. These associations were similar for bulbar and spinal ALS but stronger for those with a delay of less than 1 year between symptom onset and diagnosis. We found no association between prediagnosis BMI and survival. A decreasing BMI from early to middle age and a low BMI in middle age may be positively associated with ALS risk. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Body Weight Epidemiology Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis BMI Body Mass Index Body Weight Body Weight Changes Military Personnel Neurological Diseases United States
• ISSN:
  0002-9262
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  North Carolina ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  362-371
• Volume:
  185
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20069047
• Citation:
  Am J Epidemiol 2017 Mar; 185(5):362-371
• Contact Point Address:
  Dr. Freya Kamel, Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, PO Box 12233, Mail Drop A3-05, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
• Email:
  kamel@niehs.nih.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Epidemiology
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6426eac51314c1a6a841c423d86ef99a9985f624fc6681f2a7c9e0265c8825fab11c197a0f8743f2c72480c4e4119fa5df8f8a5ce1d177746cbb43a27816977a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/207597/cdc_207597_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 189.18 KB ]