Table 1. The clinical characteristics of the study participants.
| Characteristic | Total | TBPE | MPE | PPE | Empyema | Transudate | Others | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 382 | 144 | 134 | 19 | 43 | 24 | 18 | |
| Age, years | 60.0 (50.0, 70.0) |
58.0 (42.0, 68.0) |
60.5 (53.75, 70.25) |
66.0 (52.0, 76.0) |
63.0 (54.0, 70.0) |
64.5 (54.0, 76.0) |
50.0 (43.8, 75.5) |
0.016 |
| Gender | 0.08 | |||||||
| Male | 279 | 108 | 85 | 17 | 37 | 20 | 12 | |
| Female | 103 | 36 | 49 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 6 | |
| Smoking history | <0.01 | |||||||
| Yes | 201 | 70 | 73 | 11 | 33 | 11 | 3 | |
| No | 181 | 74 | 61 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 15 | |
| Pleural fluid analysis ADA (U/L) | 13.7 (7.6, 44.5) |
34.3 (13.8, 57.0) |
8.65 (5.7, 11.3) |
11.4 (7.6, 34.7) |
124.75 (44.5, 314.0) |
5.35 (3.7, 8.5) |
16.0 (8.2, 48.7) |
<0.01 |
| ADA <20 U/L | 217 | 44 | 121 | 13 | 4 | 24 | 11 | |
| 20≤ ADA <30 U/L | 33 | 20 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
| 30≤ ADA <40 U/L | 22 | 14 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| ADA ≥40 U/L | 110 | 66 | 2 | 3 | 33 | 0 | 6 | |
| LDH (U/L) | 344.9 (182.8, 873.3) |
290.0 (185.8, 573.3) |
346.05 (217.9, 679.0) |
382.7 (126.2, 1,798.8) |
8,514.1 (4,555.4, 13,820.0) |
83.2 (71.6, 113.0) |
260.1 (151.7, 2,957.0) |
<0.01 |
| Lymphocyte/neutrophil >2.53 | 119 | 102 | 89 | 13 | 23 | 14 | 6 | <0.01 |
Values are medians (upper quartile, lower quartile) or number. TBPE, tuberculous pleural effusion; MPE, malignant pleural effusion; PPE, parapneumonic effusion; ADA, adenosine deaminase; LDH, lactate dehydrogenase.