Table 1 Demographics and clinical features of Irish patients diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in the 1995–1997 and 2002–2004 cohorts

	1995–1997 (n = 231)2 (95% CI)	2002–2004 (n = 234) (95% CI)	1995–1997 and 2002–2004 (n = 465) (95% CI)
Median age (y)	65.7	66.1	66.0
Sex (M:F)	133:98	135:99	268:197
Limb:bulbar:generalised onset	129:80:22	139:84:11	268:164:33
Family history of ALS	9	20	29
Patients with FTD	4†	28	32
Mean diagnostic delay (months)‡	10.5	15.4	13.0
Median survival (months)	17.2	16.1	16.4
Incidence per 100 000 py	2.1 (1.8, 2.4)	1.9* (1.5, 2.4)	2.0 (1.9, 2.2)
Incidence rate per 100 000 py over 15 y	2.8 (2.4, 3.1)	2.5* (2.2, 2.8)	2.6 (2.4, 2.9)
Female incidence per 100 000 py	1.8 (1.4, 2.1)	1.6 (1.3, 2.0)	1.7 (1.5, 2.0)
Male incidence per 100 000 py	2.5 (2.0, 2.9)	2.3 (1.9, 2.7)	2.4 (2.1, 2.7)
Bulbar incidence per 100 000 py	0.9 (0.8, 1.1)	0.8 (0.6, 1.0)	0.9 (0.7, 1.0)
Limb incidence per 100 000 py	1.2 (1.0, 1.4)	1.2 (1.0, 1.4)	1.2 (1.0, 1.3)

*Age and gender adjusted to the 1996 Irish population.
†The Irish ALS Register did not routinely collect cognitive data until 2000.
‡The t test statistic = −3.2, p = 0.001.
ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; FTD, frontotemporal dementia; py, person-years.