Table 1.
Characteristics of the 849 Subcohort Members and 303 Newly Diagnosed Skin Lesion Cases in the HEALS Cohort
| Characteristic* | Skin lesion cases | Subcohort | Quintile of blood selenium levels in the Subcohort
|
p-value for trend | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q5 | ||||
| No. of participants | 303 | 849 | 170 | 173 | 167 | 171 | 168 | |
| Range of blood Se levels, μg/L | 88.5–258.8 | 69.8–262.6 | 69.8–132.4 | 132.3–145.0 | 145.1–156.6 | 156.7–169.8 | 169.9–262.6 | |
| Mean blood Se, μg/L | 150.1 | 152.3 | 120.9 | 139.3 | 150.5 | 163.4 | 188.1 | |
| Baseline characteristic | ||||||||
| Males, % | 70.3 | 37.0 | 26.5 | 35.8 | 37.7 | 39.8 | 45.2 | <0.01 |
| Mean Age | 45.0 | 36.6 | 36.4 | 35.7 | 37.2 | 35.7 | 37.8 | 0.27 |
| Mean BMI | 19.4 | 19.9 | 19.2 | 19.6 | 20.1 | 20.2 | 20.5 | <0.01 |
| Cigarettes smoking status | ||||||||
| Ever-smokers in men, % | 81.7 | 70.7 | 62.2 | 72.3 | 65.1 | 73.4 | 76.3 | 0.12 |
| Ever-smokers in women, % | 11.1 | 5.6 | 5.6 | 9.0 | 4.8 | 2.9 | 5.4 | 0.36 |
| Excessive sunlight exposure in men, % † | 8.5 | 5.1 | 8.9 | 3.2 | 7.9 | 1.5 | 5.3 | 0.32 |
| Mean educational level, years | 2.9 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 4.6 | <0.01 |
| Mean baseline well As, μg/L | 157.4 | 103.1 | 96.7 | 103.1 | 93.0 | 117.4 | 104.9 | 0.27 |
| Mean time-weighted well As, μg/L | 147.4 | 101.8 | 93.8 | 106.6 | 95.9 | 109.2 | 103.2 | 0.44 |
| Mean baseline total urinary As, μg/L | 172.0 | 137.3 | 137.0 | 134.1 | 132.9 | 142.2 | 140.0 | 0.71 |
| Mean urinary creatinine, g/L | 60.6 | 58.1 | 54.7 | 55.9 | 54.6 | 60.2 | 65.1 | 0.02 |
| Mean blood As, μg/L | 14.3 | 10.8 | 10.2 | 10.7 | 10.7 | 11.1 | 11.1 | 0.20 |
| Follow-up characteristic | ||||||||
| Mean total urinary As, μg/L | 139.1 | 119.9 | 115.5 | 122.7 | 126.2 | 111.3 | 123.9 | 0.89 |
| Mean urinary creatinine, g/L | 67.8 | 63.8 | 58.1 | 62.0 | 68.1 | 61.6 | 69.1 | 0.05 |
| Switched to other well since baseline, % | 52.2 | 40.5 | 34.7 | 39.8 | 40.1 | 43.3 | 44.5 | 0.06 |
| Mean daily food or nutrient intake ‡ | ||||||||
| No. of participants | 292 | 824 | 162 | 167 | 161 | 164 | 164 | |
| Protein, g/day | 91.6 | 86.9 | 84.9 | 85.7 | 86.4 | 89.6 | 88.7 | 0.02 |
| Iron, mg/day | 26.7 | 25.1 | 24.3 | 24.2 | 25.0 | 26.8 | 25.2 | <0.01 |
| Folate, μg/day | 137.2 | 131.7 | 126.2 | 129.7 | 129.7 | 139.7 | 134.5 | 0.05 |
| Vitamin B2, mg/day | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.02 | 1.05 | 1.05 | 1.10 | 1.07 | 0.01 |
| Vitamin B12, mg/day | 1.9 | 1.9 | 1.92 | 1.89 | 1.77 | 1.98 | 1.92 | 0.82 |
| Vitamin B6, mg/day | 3.7 | 3.5 | 3.56 | 3.54 | 3.55 | 3.48 | 3.49 | 0.12 |
| Vitamin E, mg/day | 5.7 | 5.5 | 5.2 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 5.5 | 0.36 |
| Big fish, g/day | 23.5 | 22.5 | 21.5 | 21.6 | 19.8 | 23.0 | 27.9 | 0.02 |
| Small fish, g/day | 34.5 | 32.2 | 34.7 | 36.0 | 27.7 | 29.6 | 30.5 | 0.18 |
| Bread, g/day | 25.5 | 14.5 | 7.0 | 10.5 | 17.2 | 15.0 | 22.8 | <0.01 |
| Dried Beans, g/day | 86.7 | 81.0 | 69.8 | 74.8 | 80.0 | 89.4 | 89.8 | <0.01 |
| Beans, g/day | 42.8 | 37.1 | 33.8 | 40.4 | 36.1 | 39.6 | 35.1 | 0.80 |
| Beef lamb, g/day | 13.6 | 15.4 | 14.2 | 13.5 | 16.9 | 19.5 | 13.5 | 0.51 |
| Poultry, g/day | 3.4 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 4.3 | 0.89 |
| Milk, g/day | 32.3 | 25.7 | 21.6 | 22.6 | 22.2 | 31.1 | 30.1 | 0.01 |
| Eggs, g/day | 6.7 | 8.5 | 7.6 | 8.9 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 8.7 | 0.72 |
Data on body mass index were missing for 4 cases skin lesions and 7 subcohort members. Data were also missing on time-weighted As for, respectively, 18 and 36 subjects; on follow-up total urinary As for 0 and 27 subjects; and on switching status for 0 and 26 subjects.
Men who worked outside with a bare upper body were categorized as having excessive sun exposure (28). As women in Bangladesh universally wear traditional dresses that almost completely cover the skin of their trunk, sunlight exposure of female respondents was considered minimal and therefore was not assessed in the study.
Dietary intakes were measured with a validated FFQ at baseline. A total of 824 subcohort members and 292 cases completed the FFQ. Mean values shown by quintile of blood Se in the subcohort were adjusted for age, sex, BMI, and total energy intake.