there a relationship between ALS and football?
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou-Gehrig's disease is a neurodegenerative disease that causes progressive destruction of motor neurons in the motor cortex and anterior horn of the spinal cord nerve cells transmit these commands to move from the brain the muscles and when the disease progresses, are no longer able to send its commands, the voluntary muscles are undergo a progressive atrophy and paralysis. The incidence of the disease in the general population is 0.6 to 2.6 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants per year. The values \u200b\u200bof incidence / prevalence in Italy are the highest in Western countries, with 1.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants per year: about 800 new patients each year. However, there are two areas of the world particularly affected the island of Guam in the Pacific, and the Kii Peninsula, Japan, probably in relation to environmental factors, such as eating habits. ALS predominantly affects adults, with higher incidence in people aged between 50 and 70 years, of both sexes (with slight prevalence in males). In most cases it is a sporadic disease that can affect anyone, only 10% of cases are transmitted genetically (familial ALS), mostly as an autosomal dominant (familial ALS 1). In familial forms the disease occurs early and have progressed quite quickly. Disease onset is usually insidious and the patient reports weakness and muscle fatigue. Sometimes presents cramps, strange bumps on land and / or difficult to hold objects, non-specific signs and symptoms of a disease that inevitably leading to death within about three years. With the disease progresses more and more muscles are involved to complete paralysis of the limbs, the difficoltà o impossibilità a masticare, deglutire, parlare. Normalmente sono risparmiate le funzioni vescicali e sessuali. Nelle fasi molto avanzate della malattia si rendono necessari presidi medico-chirurgici per rendere possibili l’alimentazione e la respirazione. Più dell’80% dei soggetti affetti muoiono per un disturbo respiratorio, aggravato da superinfezione bronchiale. La SLA è una malattia drammatica che distrugge progressivamente ogni distretto muscolare, rendendo il paziente incapace di compiere qualsiasi atto della vita quotidiana, lasciandolo tuttavia completamente cosciente del proprio decadimento. Le cellule nervose corticali, deputate al controllo dell’intelletto, della memoria e dell’emotività, non are indeed affected by the degenerative process. The psychological impact of the disease is substantial and the depressed mood is common to almost all patients and requires early and specific measures. The diagnosis is made using various tests and laboratory tests, MRI, nerve and muscle biopsy, electrodiagnostic tests. There is currently no effective therapy. ALS, trauma and sports activities. In football players has been observed incidence of ALS in Italy five times higher than the general population. In addition, the age of onset of the disease in this group of subjects is significantly earlier than average. From these observations, several scholars have formulated hypotheses to explain the reason for this "epidemic" in the world of football. The stock represents, to many scholars, a sport at risk of developing ALS for the continuing trauma to which the central nervous system is subjected by the header. The soccer players in fact, differently from other sports, head to hit the ball without any protection. The force with which the ball impacts on the skull is about 500-1200 Newton, however, it spreads quickly even on the neck and trunk. Another hypothesis put forward by some scientists (Felmus 1976; Granieri 1988, Gregoire 1991) and supported by others, is that vigorous physical activity can, together with other environmental factors and constitutional dell'insorgeneza be responsible for the disease. Previous studies, but indirect, have shown that during exercise there is the production of reactive oxygen species. The oxygen free radicals are created, the players, the combination of intense physical effort with other factors, in fact, dietary habits (food pro-oxidants), prolonged use of antiinflammatory drugs, followed by the repeated ischemia iperivascolarizzazione (due microtraumatic to prolonged anaerobic activity or followed by sudden reoxygenation) may represent an additional source of oxidative stress, which the central nervous system is particularly Senis. Esso contiene infatti una grande quantità di substrati facilmente ossidabili.
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