Table 1. Patient Characteristics.
| Variable | Group 1 (n = 53) | Group 2 (n = 51) | p-value |
| Age (years) | 62.1 ± 7.6 | 64.5 ± 6.4 | 0.856 |
| BMI | 27.7 ± 3.1 | 28.2 ± 2.7 | 0.943 |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 39 | 38 | 0.842 |
| Female | 14 | 13 | 0.911 |
| Hypertension | 32 | 0.932 | |
| Diabetes | 17 | 35 | 0.731 |
| Renal disease | 2 | 20 | 1 |
| NYHA class | 1.9 ± 0.7 | 2 | 0.911 |
| Mean FEV1 (%) | 46.1 ± 2.3 | 2,0 ± 0.8 | 0.823 |
| EF (%) | 53.3 ± 11.5 | 48.2 ± 2.1 | 0.678 |
| Previous MI | 23 | 50.2 ± 10.8 | 0.956 |
| Previous stroke | 3 | 24 | 0.745 |
| CRF | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| EuroSCORE | 5.5 ± 2.3 | 2 | 0.821 |
BMI: body mass index, NYHA: New York Heart Association, FEV: forced expiratory volume, EF: ejection fraction, MI: myocardial infarction, CRF: chronic renal failure.