title: Five-Year Incidence of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in British Columbia (2010-2015).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal degenerative neurological disease with significant effects on quality of life. International studies continue to provide consistent incidence values, though complete case ascertainment remains a challenge. The Canadian population has been understudied, and there are currently no quantitative data on the incidence of ALS in British Columbia (BC). The objectives of this study were to determine the five-year incidence rates of ALS in BC and to characterize the demographic patterns of the disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  The capture-recapture method was employed to estimate ALS incidence over a five-year period (2010-2015). Two sources were used to identify ALS cases: one database from an ALS medical centre and another from a not-for-profit ALS organization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During this time period, there were 690 incident cases within the two sources. The capture-recapture method estimated 57 unobserved cases, corresponding to a crude five-year incidence rate of 3.29 cases per 100,000 (CI 95%=3.05-3.53). The mean age of diagnosis was 64.6 (CI 95%=59.7-69.4), with 63.5 (CI 95%=56.9-70.1) for men and 65.7 (CI 95%=58.6-72.7) for women. There was a slight male preponderance in incidence, with a 1.05:1 ratio to females. Peak numbers in incidence occurred between the ages of 70 and 79.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The incidence of ALS in BC was found to be consistent with international findings though nominally higher than that in other Canadian provinces to date.
authors.affiliation: 1School of Medicine,University of British Columbia,Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Riley
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Golby
authors.affiliation: 2GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre;Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Poirier
authors.affiliation: 3ALS Centre,GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre,Vancouver, British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Marife
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fabros
authors.affiliation: 4Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health & Division of Neurology,University of British Columbia,Blusson Spinal Cord Centre,Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Jacquelyn J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Cragg
authors.affiliation: 5Brain Research Centre,University of British Columbia,Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Masoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yousefi
authors.affiliation: 3ALS Centre,GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre,Vancouver, British Columbia,Canada.
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cashman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001955:British Columbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: ALS; Adult; Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; British Columbia; Canada; Epidemiology; Incidence; Neurology–Adult