Season of birth and Alzheimer's disease: a population-based study in Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean/Québec (IMAGE Project).
The birth distribution of 399 cases of Alzheimer's disease (AD) identified in the region of Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean (Québec) was compared with that of: (a) the population currently living in the area; and (b) the population born during the same period in the same area. AD cases have been recruited since 1986 by the IMAGE Project. Cases and controls were grouped according to the month of birth and according to the day of birth using density estimation. Analyses showed a significant deficit of births in the month of May. We believe these preliminary results deserve further attention and we suggest two possible explanations that could lead to a deficit of AD births at specific periods during the year.
Vézina
H
H
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Houde
L
L
Charbonneau
H
H
Beaudry
M
M
Cholette
A
A
Daoud
N
N
Mathieu
J
J
Robitaille
Y
Y
Veilleux
F
F
Gauvreau
D
D
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D011792:Quebec / Q000453:epidemiology; D012306:Risk; D012621:Seasons; D012744:Sex Ratio