Clinical features of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in south-west China

Our objective was to profile clinical features of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); we performed a large sample, cross-sectional study based on a hospital registry of ALS in south-west China. Patients were coded in our tertiary referral centre from May 2006 to September 2014. Demographic data and disease-related parameters were collected. A total of 1131 patients were included. Mean age of onset was 54.3 ± 11.6 years and the highest proportion of onset age (30.6%) was between 51 and 60 years. Male:female ratio was 1.45:1. Nearly 30% of the patients were young onset, and 20.3% of the patients were bulbar onset; only 35% received riluzole treatment. The young-onset patients had a higher educational level with a higher proportion performing manual labour and living in rural areas, and a lower proportion with bulbar onset than those who were older at onset. The bulbar-onset patients were older at age of onset, with a lower proportion of males than spinal-onset patients. In conclusion, Chinese ALS patients may be younger at age of onset than Caucasian patients. Environmental and geographical factors are related to the occurrence of ALS. The large treatment gap indicated a pressing need for medical and financial support for Chinese ALS patients.