Analysis of non-motor symptoms in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Figures & data

Table 1. Distribution of symptoms among cases and controls in the study population.

	Cold limbs	Pain	Sleep problems	Loss of appetite	Urge to go toilet
Cases % responding “yes”	60.4	57.7	43.4	29.7	93.1
Cases n responding “yes”	110	105	79	54	174
Cases n responding “no”	72	77	103	128	8
Controls % responding “yes”	14.0	33.3	38.6	5.3	80.7
Controls n responding “yes”	8	19	22	3	46
Controls n responding “no”	49	38	35	54	11
Chi square statistic and p-value	37.39, 9.67 × 10^-10	10.32, 0.0013	0.412, 0.52	14.24, 0.00016	13.1, 0.00030

Table 2. Cold limbs in cases and controls, as well as the timing pattern of coldness.

Cold limbs	Coldness experienced at any time without a pattern	Coldness experienced with a specific daily pattern	Morning	Afternoon	Evening	Night
Cases %	64.5	35.5	–	–	–	–
Cases n	71	39	6	8	12	13
Controls %	62.5	37.5	–	–	–	–
Controls n	5	3	0	1	1	1

Table 3. The distribution of cold limbs in patients and controls depending on limb strength.

Cold limbs	Feeling cold in weak limb	Feeling cold in both weak and strong limbs	Feeling cold in strong limb	Do not have weak limbs
Cases %	61.8	30	2.7	5.5
Cases n	68	33	3	6
Controls %	3.5	1.7	8.8	86.0
Controls n	2	1	5	49

Table 4. The various types of pain reported. Respondents could report multiple pain types and the total percentage does not sum to 100.

Pain	Burning	Cold	Shock	Some other type
Cases %	33.3	17.1	24.8	46.7
Cases n	35	18	26	49
Controls %	21.1	94.7	21.1	68.4
Controls n	4	18	4	13

Table 5. Pain intensity in patients and controls on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most severe pain. The scale only refers to the types of pain reported in Table 4.

Pain scale	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	No response
Cases %	2.9	5.7	12.4	22.8	11.4	19.0	7.6	4.7	7.6	2.9	2.9
Cases n	3	6	13	24	12	20	8	5	8	3	3
Controls %	0	15.7	10.5	15.7	5.2	10.5	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.2	21.0
Controls n	0	3	2	3	1	2	1	1	1	1	4

Table 6. Sensations felt in addition to pain. Respondents could report multiple associations and the total percentage may not sum to 100.

	Pain with a burning sensation	Pain with pins and needle sensation	Pain with numbness	Pain with itching	Other kind of pain
Cases %	17.5	21.81	20.60	11.51	28.48
Cases n	29	36	34	19	47
Controls %	20.0	16.0	24.0	0	40
Controls n	5	4	6	0	10

Table 7. Different reasons for loss of appetite. Respondents could provide more than one reason for loss of appetite and the total percentage does not sum to 100%.

Loss of appetite	Feeling full quickly	Low mood	Nausea	Time it takes to eat	Medication	Other reasons
Cases %	25.5	45.7	8.5	23.4	6.3	15.9
Cases n	24	19	8	22	6	15
Controls %	22.2	22.2	11.1	11.1	11.1	22.2
Controls n	2	2	1	1	1	2

Data availability statement

Not applicable.