Familial, Environmental, and Occupational Risk Factors in Development of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

BACKGROUND: Definite etiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is still a matter of debate. AIMS: The study was designed to evaluate the role of environmental, occupational, and familial risk factors in development of ALS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a case control study of 110 cases of definite ALS with 240 age and sex matched controls. Investigations were done on the following aspects- family history, occupation, living place, source of drinking water, exposure to industrial, chemical, agricultural toxins and heavy metals, physical and electrical injury, working under magnetic field for more than 10 years in both the groups. Clinical examinations, electrophysiological, and neuroimaging studies were done in every patient. Chi square test, logistic regression analysis, and calculation of odds ratio were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Rural livings (odds ratio = 1.99), smoking (odds ratio = 1.88), insecticides, and pesticides exposures (odds ratio = 1.61), electrical injury (odds ratio = 6.2) were detected as the associated factors in development amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. CONCLUSIONS: The study expressed the need of extensive research globally in molecular and genetic levels to detect the associated factors in etiopathogenesis of ALS for better understanding the etiology and for remedial aspects.