Table 1.
Baseline Characteristics of the Penn Comprehensive ALS Center Cohort (N = 837)
| Variable | Data |
|---|---|
| Age at diagnosis, yr | 63 ± 12 |
| Sex, M, n (%) | 464 (55) |
| Race, n (%) | |
| White | 698 (83) |
| African American | 77 (9) |
| Other | 62 (8) |
| BMI class, n (%) | |
| <18.5 kg/m2 | 37 (4) |
| 18.5–24.9 kg/m2 | 349 (42) |
| 25–29.9 kg/m2 | 284 (34) |
| >30 kg/m2 | 167 (20) |
| Diagnosis delay, yr | 1.0 (0.6–1.7) |
| El Escorial criteria, n (%) | |
| Definite ALS | 175 (21) |
| Possible ALS | 217 (26) |
| Probable ALS | 252 (30) |
| Suspected ALS | 193 (23) |
| Symptom onset site, n (%) | |
| Limb | 623 (74) |
| Bulbar | 214 (26) |
| FVC seated, % predicted | 74 ± 24 |
| ALSFRS-R total score | 36 ± 7 |
| ALSFRS-R dyspnea, n (%) | |
| 4 | 473 (57) |
| 3 | 220 (26) |
| 2 | 89 (11) |
| 1 | 54 (6) |
| 0 | 1 (<1) |
| ALSFRS-R orthopnea, n (%) | |
| 4 | 673 (81) |
| 3 | 60 (7) |
| 2 | 62 (7) |
| 1 | 6 (1) |
| 0 | 36 (4) |
| Smoking history, n (%) | |
| Current | 82 (10) |
| Previous | 315 (38) |
| Never | 440 (52) |
| Coronary artery disease, n (%) | 74 (9) |
| Diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 96 (11) |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 330 (39) |
Definition of abbreviations: ALS = amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; ALSFRS-R = ALS Functional Rating Scale–Revised; BMI = body mass index.
Data are mean ± SD or median (25th–75th percentiles) unless otherwise indicated.