Item Details

abstract

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a motor neuron disease with progressive loss of upper and lower motor neurons, whereas frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a progressive dementing condition characterized by selective degeneration of the frontal and anterior temporal lobes. A link between ALS and FTD is well-established, and case studies document a strong association between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and the behavioral form of FTD. A retrospective cohort study was conducted from patients visits to the Wake Forest School of Medicine. Individuals with ALS were identified from Epic chart review from the past ten years. The charts were matched, Caucasian to African-American patients, regarding the following variables: race, age, and site of onset. Cognitive behavioral screen (CBS) scores were collected from all cases and compared between Caucasian and African American cohorts. In the Epic database there are 36 African-Americans patients and 102 Caucasian patients that received ALS-CBS testing. The CBS scores were reviewed and we performed logistic regression to compare their scores. No clear association was found between CBS scores and race in individuals with ALS, although after controlling for multiple variables some patterns arose suggesting lower CBS scores in African Americans. The evolving knowledge of the links between ALS and FTD has allowed for better understanding of how these conditions affect each other. Determining the prevalence of FTD in different races may provide insight regarding who is at risk, and it may also impact how physicians recognize and treat dementia in those with ALS.

subject

contributor

Yancey, Julia A (author)

Cartwright, Michael S (committee chair)

Langefeld, Carl D (committee member)

Caress, James B (committee member)

date

2020-05-29T08:35:59Z (accessioned)

2020-05-29T08:35:59Z (available)

2020 (issued)

degree

Health Disparities in Neuroscience-related Disorders – MS (discipline)

identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/96821 (uri)

language

en (iso)

publisher

Wake Forest University

title

THE PREVALENCE AND ONE YEAR INCIDENCE OF FRONTOTEMPORAL DEMENTIA IN INDIVIDUALS WITH AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS BASED ON RACE

type

Thesis