“Endemic paraplegia of Koza in Kii” in Honcho Koji Innen Shu published in 1689 is probably the earliest description of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis of Kii Peninsula: Presentation of the original and investigation of factuality

Abstract

High prevalence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in Kii Province (Kii) located in southern Kii Peninsula was first pointed out by Kinnosuke Miura in 1911, and epidemiological studies by Kiyoshi Kimura et al. verified extremely high incidence after World War II. In 1970s, Yoshiro Yase pointed out that “endemic paraplegia of Koza in Kii” in Honcho Koji Innen Shu published in 1689 would mean the same disorder as that of ALS and be the earliest description of Kii ALS although he gave no clear grounds. In this study, the original of the article was presented with an English translation, and factuality of it was investigated from the viewpoints of geography, geology, culture and history of Kii. As a result, it was shown that the article was probably written based on historical events and that the “endemic paraplegia” meant the same disorder as Kii ALS. The author has concluded that “endemic paraplegia of Koza in Kii” is likely to be the earliest description of Kii ALS since ALS is included in the causes of paraplegias of these kinds.