Table 1.
Comparison of socio-demographic variables, health-related habits, and chronic diseases between the study groups.
| Variable | DS (n = 303) | RN (n = 251) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (mean ± SD) | 44.7 ± 14.7 | 53.1 ± 17.5 | < 0.001 |
| Gender (% female) | 55.6 | 61.8 | 0.138 |
| Family status (%) | |||
| Single | 19.5 | 11.6 | 0.002 |
| Married | 65.2 | 73.3 | |
| Divorced | 12.5 | 8 | |
| Widowed | 2.7 | 6.8 | |
| Health-related habits (%) | |||
| Works outdoors | 35.9 | 20.3 | < 0.001 |
| Smokes | 23.3 | 23.1 | 0.949 |
| Consumes alcohol | 2.7 | 1.2 | 0.198 |
| Chronic co-morbidity (%) | |||
| Heart disease | 5.2 | 6.8 | 0.409 |
| Asthma | 5.2 | 4.8 | 0.839 |
| Other chronic lung disease | 4.2 | 3.6 | 0.688 |
| Malignancy | 7.9 | 9.2 | 0.581 |
| Stroke | 0.6 | 2 | 0.129 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 6.4 | 6.4 | 0.996 |
| Hypertension | 17.6 | 17.5 | 0.989 |
| Psychiatric disease | 4.2 | 3.6 | 0.688 |
| Inflammatory bowel disease | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.729 |
| Skin disease | |||
| Inflammatory | 5.5 | 4.8 | 0.005 |
| Skin nevi | 15.5 | 6.8 | |
| Rheumatic disorders | |||
| Inflammatory | 2.1 | 4 | 0.15 |
| Non-inflammatory | 30.6 | 24.7 | |
| Vascular disease | 8.2 | 12.4 | 0.097 |
DS = Dead Sea group
RN = Ramat Negev group