Table 2.

Basic characteristics of asthmatics and controls.

Sl. no	Patient characteristics	Asthma blood	Normal control
(1)	Number of patients (n)	52	26
(2)	Mean age (minimum–maximum)	52 (25–74)	50 (25–74)
(3)	Gender
	(i) Women (n)	33	17
	(ii) Men (n)	19	9
(4)	Asthma classification*
	(I) Mild intermittent	17
	(II) Mild persistent	7
	(III) Moderate persistent	12
	(IV) Severe persistent	13
	Unknown	3
(5)	Mean lung function (FEV1) (%) (minimum–maximum)	78.3 (28.5–137)

^*Classified by German Airway League and German Respiratory Society. Guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of asthma patients (21).