Lumbar punctures are safe in patients with ALS and have a risk profile similar to that in the non‐ALS population

摘要: Introduction/Aims Analysis of biofluids, especially cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), is critically important for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research. Collection of CSF is typically performed by lumbar puncture (LP). Previous studies have demonstrated the safety of LPs in patients with other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, although there are no published studies of the safety of LPs in patients with ALS. We performed a retrospective analysis of complications resulting from LPs. Methods This is a retrospective study of LPs performed between 2015 and 2021 on a total of 233 participants (healthy controls [n = 63], ALS [n = 154], and disease controls [n = 16]) as part of clinical research studies at the Washington University ALS Center. We used bivariate logistical analyses looking for associations between participant characteristics and adverse events (AEs), and likelihood ratio tests were …