Table 1.
Baseline patient characteristics.
| Characteristic | African Americans (n = 160) | Caucasian Americans (n = 173) | p-value** |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 107 (67%) | 119 (69%) | 0.71 |
| Age (years)* | 49 (45, 53) | 48 (43, 52) | 0.08 |
| Duration of Infection (years)* | 25 (18, 32) | 27.0 (20, 33) | 0.16 |
| Weight (kg)* | 87.3 (78.9, 102.5) | 82.6 (73.5, 97.1) | 0.004 |
| Body Mass Index (kg/m2)* | 29.5 (26.3, 34.0) | 27.6 (24.8, 31.7) | 0.003 |
| History of diabetes | 23 (14%) | 5 (3%) | 0.0002 |
| History of hypertension | 69 (43%) | 39 (23%) | <0.0001 |
| Current alcohol use (drinks/day) p=0.50 | |||
| <1 | 138 (89%) | 147 (87%) | 0.57 |
| 1 to <2 | 8 (5%) | 14 (8%) | 0.26 |
| ≥ 2 | 9 (6%) | 8 (5%) | 0.67 |
| Currently smoking | 66 (42.3) | 58 (33.9) | 0.12 |
| ALT (IU/L) | 59.5 (41, 88) | 76 (53, 140) | <0.0001 |
| Albumin (g/dL)* | 4.1 (3.8, 4.3) | 4.2 (4.0, 4.4) | 0.0008 |
| Total Bilirubin (mg/dL)* | 0.6 (0.4, 0.8) | 0.7 (0.5, 0.9) | 0.006 |
| Prothrombin time (INR)* | 1.0 (0.9, 1.1) | 1.0 (0.9, 1.1) | 0.93 |
| Ishak Necroinflammatory Score (0-18)* | 10 (8, 12) | 11 (8, 13) | 0.15 |
| Ishak Fibrosis Score (0-6)* | 2 (1, 3) | 2 (1, 3) | 0.24 |
| Bridging fibrosis and cirrhosis | 54 (34%) | 69 (40%) | 0.28 |
| Steatosis (≥5% present) [n (%)] | 46 (29%) | 64 (37%) | 0.13 |
| HCV subtype [n (%)] p=0.002 | |||
| 1a | 77 (48%) | 93 (54%) | 0.30 |
| 1b | 74 (46%) | 54 (31%) | 0.005 |
| HCV RNA level (×106IU/ml)* | 6.4 (5.6, 6.7) | 6.5 (5.7, 6.8) | 0.26 |
*
Continuous variables represented by median (25th percentile, 75th percentile)
**
The Wilcoxon rank sum test was used to compare distributions for continuous variables. Pearson’s chi-square test was used to compare percentages