Abstract
A conjugal case of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) observed in Sardinia, Italy is reported. This is believed to be the ninth such observation described in the literature. The couple had lived together for 38 years in a house adjacent to the distillery they owned. No exogenous factors were revealed which could explain the genesis of the disease in either patients. Particularly, exposure to alcohol does not appear to have been involved in causing ALS. On the basis of statistical and epidemiological evaluations, the most likely explanation is that this association was purely coincidental.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hochberg FH, Brian JA, Whelan MA (1974) Clustering of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Lancet 1:34
Hyser CL, Kissel JT, Mendell JR (1987) Three cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in a common occupational environment. J Neurol 234:443–444
Kilnes AW, Hochberg FH (1977) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in a high selenium environment. JAMA 237:2843–2844
Melmed C, Krieger C (1982) A cluster of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Arch Neurol 39:595–596
Sanders M (1980) Clustering of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. JAMA 244:435
Sienko DG, Davis JP, Taylor JA, Brooks BR (1990) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. A case control study following detection of a cluster in a small Wisconsin community. Arch Neurol 47:38–41
Martinez Matos JA, Martinez Ferri M, Arbizu Urdiain T, Montero J (1986) Esclerosis lateral amiotrofica conyugal. Neurologia 1:135–136
Cornblath DR, Kurland LT, Boylan KB, Morrison L, Radhakrishnan K, Montgomery M (1993) Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Report of a young married couple. Neurology 43:2378–2380
Camu W, Cadilhac J, Billiard M (1994) Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A report on two couples from southern France. Neurology 44:547–548
Chad D, Mitsumoto H, Adelman LS, Bradley WG, Munsat TL, Zieper I (1982) Conjugal motor neuron disease. Neurology 32:306–307
Maloo JC, Radhakrishnan K, Poddar SK, Thacker AK (1987) Conjugal motor neuron disease. J Assoc Physicians India 35:303–304
Paolino E, Granieri E, Tola MR, Rosati G (1983) Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Ann Neurol 14:699
Poloni M, Micheli A, Facchetti D, Mai R, Ceriani F, Cattalini C (1997) Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: toxic clustering or change? Ital J Neurol Sci, 18:109–112
Li TM, Alberman E, Swash M (1993) Clinical features and associations of 560 cases of motor neuron disease. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 53:1043–1045
Giagheddu M, Puggioni G, Masala C, et al (1983) Epidemiologic study of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Sardinia, Italy. Acta Neurol Scand 68:394–404
Giagheddu M, Mascia V, Cannas A et al (1993) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Sardinia, Italy: An epidemiologic study. Acta Neurol Scand 87:446–454
Armitage P (1971) Statistical methods in medical research. Wiley, New York
Tupchong L, Levison DA, Jones AE (1985) Concomitant conjugal gliomas with similar histologic features. Cancer 55:864–869
Knox G (1964) Epidemiology of childhood leukemia in Northumberland and Durham. Br J Prev Soc Med 18:17–24
Bailar JC, Ederer F (1964) Significance factors for the ratio of a Poisson variable to its expectation. Biometrics 20:639–643
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rachele, M.G., Mascia, V., Tacconi, P. et al. Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a report on a couple from Sardinia, Italy. Ital J Neuro Sci 19, 97–100 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02427565
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02427565