Another 12 to 20 percent of familial cases result from mutations in the SOD1 gene that is involved in production of the enzyme copper-zinc superoxide dismutase 1.Some people with this gene also develop a type of frontotemporal degeneration (FTD, a form of dementia) caused by atrophy of the brain's temporal and frontal lobes. About 25 to 40 percent of all familial cases (and a small percentage of sporadic cases) are caused by a defect in the C9ORF72 gene, which makes a protein that is found in motor neurons and nerve cells in the brain.Mutations in more than a dozen genes have been found to cause familial ALS. Although family members of people with sporadic ALS are at an increased risk for the disease, the overall risk is very low and most will not develop ALS.Ībout five to 10 percent of all ALS cases are familial (also called inherited or genetic). This means the disease seems to occur at random with no clearly associated risk factors and no family history of the disease. Nearly all cases of ALS are considered sporadic. Possible risk factors for veterans include exposure to lead, pesticides, and other environmental toxins. Some studies suggest that military veterans are about one and half to two times more likely to develop ALS, although the reason for this is unclear. Race and ethnicity-Caucasians and non-Hispanics are most likely to develop the disease, but ALS affects people of all races and ethnic backgrounds.However, as people age the difference between the sexes disappears. Biological sex-Males are slightly more likely to develop ALS.Age-Although the disease can strike at any age, symptoms most commonly develop between the ages of 55 and 75.Who is more likely to get amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)? However, about 10 percent of people with ALS survive for a decade or more. Experience problems with language or decision-makingĪLS doesn't affect your ability to taste, touch, or smell, or hear. Most people with ALS die from respiratory failure, usually within three to five years from when the symptoms first appear. Anxiety and depression, because people with ALS usually remain able to reason, remember, understand, and are aware of their progressive loss of functionĪlthough not as common, people with ALS may also:.Muscle cramps and neuropathy (nerve damage or disease). Breathing (dyspnea) individuals with ALS eventually lose the ability to breathe on their own and must depend on a ventilator.Chewing food and swallowing (dysphagia).
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