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Physical activity as risk factor in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Abstract

Objective

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with rapid progression and high mortality. Physical activity (PA) has been identified as a major risk factor for ALS. However, the results across studies are still controversial. We aimed to explore the association between different types of PA and ALS.

Methods

The PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane and Web of Science databases were systematically searched for case–control and cohort studies which explored the relationship between PA and ALS from inception to October 2022. The data were analyzed to generate a pooled effect and 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results

A total of 16,686 articles were included in the systematic search. After filtering, 28 studies from online database and 6 studies from references of relevant articles remained in the analysis. Individuals with a history of vigorous physical activity (OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.06–1.49), occupational-related activity (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.04–1.25), leisure time activity (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.04–1.12), unclassified PA (OR 1.05 95% CI 1.02–1.09) and professional athletes (SMR 5.23, 95% CI 2.67–10.25; SIR 2.54, 95% CI 1.37–4.69) were in higher risk of developing ALS. In contrast, sport-related activity (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.76–1.26) was not associated with ALS.

Conclusions

Vigorous physical activity, occupational-related activity, leisure time activity, unclassified PA and professional athletes were associated with a higher risk of ALS, while sport-related activity showed no association with ALS. Our findings clarified the relation between different types of PA and ALS and provided some practicable advice for the lifestyle of high-risk populations.

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Data availability

All data analyzed during this study are included in supplementary materials.

Abbreviations

ALS:

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

MND:

Motor neuron disease

PA:

Physical activity

MOOSE:

Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology

PRISMA:

Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (2020) guideline

OR:

Odds ratio

HR:

Hazard ratio

CI:

Confidence intervals

SMR:

Standardized mortality rate

SIR:

Standardized incidence rate

NOS:

Newcastle–Ottawa Scale

CoPAs:

Compendium of Physical Activities

MET:

Metabolic equivalents

VPA:

Vigorous physical activity

SE:

Standard error

BMI:

Body mass index

MR:

Mendelian randomization

SOD1:

Superoxide dismutase 1

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all authors of the original research studies included in the meta-analysis.

Funding

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant No. 2021YFC2501203 and 2021YFC2501205), the Sichuan Science and Technology Program (Grant No. 2022ZDZX0023 and 2020YJ0457).

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Author notes

  1. Xiaoting Zheng and Shichan Wang contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatrics, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37, Guoxue Lane, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China

    Xiaoting Zheng, Shichan Wang, Jingxuan Huang, Junyu Lin, Tianmi Yang, Yi Xiao, Qirui Jiang, Chunyu Li & Huifang Shang

  2. Department of Neurology, Sichuan Academy of Medical Science and Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, Chengdu, 610031, China

    Rui Huang

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  1. Xiaoting Zheng
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Contributions

XZ, CL and HS conceived and designed the study. XZ and SW selected studies, collected data and quality assessment. JH and CL cross-checked the data and quality assessment. XZ, SW and JH contributed to the statistical analysis. XZ wrote the first manuscript draft. XZ, SW, JL, TY, YX, QJ revised the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Chunyu Li or Huifang Shang.

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Zheng, X., Wang, S., Huang, J. et al. Physical activity as risk factor in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Neurol 270, 2438–2450 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-022-11555-4

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