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Season of birth and Alzheimer's disease: a population-based study in Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean/Québec (IMAGE Project)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

H. Vézina ,
L. Houde ,
H. Charbonneau ,
M. Beaudry ,
A. Cholette ,
N. Daoud ,
J. Mathieu ,
Y. Robitaille ,
F. Veilleux  and
D. Gauvreau
H. Vézina
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
L. Houde
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
H. Charbonneau
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
M. Beaudry
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
A. Cholette
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
N. Daoud
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
J. Mathieu
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
Y. Robitaille
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
F. Veilleux
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
D. Gauvreau*
Affiliation:
IMAGE Project, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges and the Departments of Demography and Pathology, University of Montréal, Montréal; Hôpital de Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr Denis Gauvreau, Unité interdisciplinaire du Project IMAGE, Centre de recherche, Centre hospitalier Côte-des-Neiges, 4565 Chemin-de-la-Reine-Marie, Montréal, Québec, Canada. H3W 1W5.
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Synopsis

The birth distribution of 399 cases of Alzheimer's disease (AD) identified in the region of Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean (Québec) was compared with that of: (a) the population currently living in the area; and (b) the population born during the same period in the area. AD cases have been recruited since 1986 by the IMAGE Project. Cases and controls were grouped according to the month of birth and according to the day of birth using density estimation. Analyses showed a significant deficit of births in the month of May. We believe these preliminary results deserve further attention and we suggest two possible explanations that could lead to a deficit of AD births at specific periods during the year.

Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , January 1996 , pp. 143 - 149
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

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