Table 1.
The demographic and clinical characteristics of subjects
| Characteristics | Tuberculous hydrothorax (n = 25) | Malignant hydrothorax (n = 24) | HCs (n = 23) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male/female | 13/12 | 12/12 | 12/11 |
| Age | 45 (23–67) | 55 (39–67) | 48 (28–68) |
| Blood WBC (×109/L) | 6.15 ± 1.94 | 6.59 ± 1.62 | 6.16 ± 1.33 |
| Blood Lymphocyte (×109/L) | 1.19 ± 0.38* | 1.58 ± 0.33# | 1.50 ± 0.35 |
| Pleural fluid | |||
| WBC (×106/mL) | 2,340 (650–5,120) | 1,730 (680–2,670)# | _ |
| Mononuclear cells (×106/mL) | 1,808 (520–4,096) | 1,408 (544–2,286)# | _ |
| CEA (ng/mL) | 1.69 (0.46–5.8) | 87.6 (1.43–951.5)# | _ |
| LDH (U/L) | 375 (192–1,249) | 726 (208–1,180)# | _ |
| ADA (U/L) | 52.6 (3.5–113.2) | 23.2 (3.7–48.7)# | _ |
WBC white blood cell, CEA carcino-embryonic antigen, LDH lactate dehydrogenase, ADA adenosine deaminase, – not available.
* P < 0.05 vs. the HCs; #P < 0.05 vs. the tuberculous hydrothorax patients; the normal values for CEA, LDH, and ADA are 0–5 ng/mL, 135–226 U/L, and 0–25 U/L, respectively.