Introduction: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common adult motor neuron disease (MND), presenting with a combination of upper (UMN) and lower (lmn) motor neuron signs, with high mortality. other less frequent mnd are progressive muscular atrophy (pma) and primary lateral sclerosis (pls).
Objectives: To describe demographic data, clinical forms of presentation and evolution of patients with MND, looking for prognostic indicators factors.
Methods: Retrospective study of a series of patients with MND, registering demographic data, clinical variables and mortality-survival, analyzed by means of statistical package SPSS 6.1.2.
Results: They are 54 patients with MND (50 ALS, 3 PMA and 1 PLS), 30 (55.6%) men and 24 (44.4%) women, bulbar beginning forms in 13 cases (24.1%) and spinal in 41 (75.9%). Average age at beginning 60+/-14 (29-82 years), more delayed in women (p<0.05), and in patients with bulbar form (p<0.05) with clear predominance of female sex (p<0.03). There are 31 dead patients (57.4%) and 23 alive ones (42.6%), with average survival from the beginning symptoms of 46.51+/-40.9 months. Nine months (11-209), observing inversely proportional relation with the age of beginning of the disease (p<0.02). Bulbar beginning forms (p<0.01) and LMN affectation signs, specially bulbar and cervical levels (p<0,005), are associated with a greater probability of dying while the existence of UMN affectation signs on imaging techniques 362 ques has a greater probability of survival (p<0,05).
Conclusions: The advanced age and the bulbar beginning forms are factors of bad prognosis, specially the predominant affectation of LMN over UMN.