Memory deficits in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are not exclusively caused by executive dysfunction: a comparative neuropsychological study of amnestic mild cognitive impairment

Table 1 Baseline characteristics

Demographic variable	ALS	N	Amnestic MCI	N	Healthy controls	N	p-value
Age at time of assessment	60.4 (12.2)	40	64.5 (5.4)	39	62.7 (10.2)	40	0.152
Male sex	65.0% (-)	40	45.0% (-)	39	69.2% (-)	40	0.063
Education (years)*	13.0 (2.5)	40	14.6 (2.8)	37	14.0 (2.1)	40	0.016
BDI-II (estimated depression scores)	7.9 (6.6)	34	6.8 (4.7)	35	4.7 (4.9)	40	0.057
ALSFRS-R	38.4 (7.8)	40	n.a.		n.a.		n.a.
Disease duration (in months; from symptom onset)	22.16 (19.5)	40	n.a.		n.a.		n.a.
Disease progression	0.54 (0.36)	40	n.a.		n.a.		n.a.

Values are mean (SD). Two-tailed p-values of <0.05 are considered significant, shown in bold.
ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; MCI, mild cognitive impairment; BDI-II, Beck Depression Inventory-II; ALSFRS-R, ALS Functional Rating Scale Revised; n.a., not applicable; disease duration, time from symptom onset to assessment; disease progression, estimated using decline in ALS Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) score since symptom onset (48-ALSFRS-R/disease duration [38]); *Years of education include: Years attended in school plus years of the longest, completed education.