Table 1.
Demographics, baseline characteristics, plasma makers, and symptoms among no GER, GER-s, and GER-d groups. (N = 777).
| Variables | No GER (n = 436) | GER-s (n = 200) | GER-d (n = 141) | P value |
| Age (yr) | 40.89 ± 9.38 | 41.59 ± 10.34 | 46.18 ± 9.83†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Sex | <.001∗ | |||
| Male | 185 (42.43%) | 143 (71.50%)† | 119 (84.40%)†,‡ | |
| Female | 251 (57.57%) | 57 (28.50%) | 22 (15.60%) | |
| Body mass index | <.001∗ | |||
| Normal (<25 kg/m2) | 357 (81.88%) | 140 (70%)† | 60 (42.55%)†,‡ | |
| Overweight (25–30 kg/m2) | 69 (15.83%) | 52 (26%) | 67 (47.52%) | |
| Obese (>30 kg/m2) | 10 (2.29%) | 8 (4%) | 14 (9.93%) | |
| Waistline, cm | 76.12 ± 9.67 | 80.73 ± 8.97† | 87.18 ± 9.20†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Current smoking | <.001∗ | |||
| Yes | 77 (17.66%) | 64 (32%)† | 54 (38.3%)† | |
| No | 359 (82.34%) | 136 (68%) | 87 (61.0%) | |
| Current drinking | <.001∗ | |||
| Yes | 149 (34.17%) | 91 (45.50%)† | 71 (50.35%)† | |
| No | 287 (65.83%) | 109 (54.50%) | 70 (49.65%) | |
| r-GT > 65 | .003∗ | |||
| Yes | 19 (4.4%) | 20 (10%)† | 16 (11.3%)† | |
| No | 417 (95.6%) | 180 (90%) | 125 (88.7%) | |
| Current drinking + r-GT > 65 | <.001∗ | |||
| Yes | 9 (2.06%) | 12 (6%)† | 13 (9.22%)† | |
| No | 427 (97.94%) | 188 (94%) | 128 (90.78%) | |
| Morphologic type | ||||
| 1 | 189 (43.34%) | 100 (50%) | 53 (37.59%) | .069 |
| 2 | 23 (5.28%) | 59 (29.50%)† | 61 (43.26%)† | <.001∗ |
| 3 | 20 (4.60%) | 18 (9%) | 16 (11.35%)† | .010∗ |
| 4 | 6 (1.38%) | 0 (0%) | 1 (0.71%) | NA |
| 5 | 197 (45.18%) | 21 (10.50%)† | 10 (7.09%)† | <.001∗ |
| 6 | 1 (0.23%) | 2 (1.00%) | 0 (0%) | NA |
| Chronic disease | ||||
| Hypertension | 25 (5.73%) | 23 (11.50%)† | 31 (21.99%)†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Diabetes mellitus | 8 (1.83%) | 10 (5.00%) | 9 (6.38%)† | .015† |
| Exercise, yes (%) | 278 (63.76%) | 130 (65.00%) | 90 (63.83%) | |
| Plasma markers | ||||
| Hs-CRP | 0.07 (0.04–0.14) | 0.08 (0.05–0.17) | 0.12 (0.06–0.21)†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Total cholesterol | 184.5 (165–207) | 189 (166.5–208) | 200 (173–225)†,‡ | .013∗ |
| Triglycerides | 93.0 (69.0–130.5) | 102 (80–159)† | 133 (90–190)†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Symptoms | ||||
| Heartburn | 44 (10.09%) | 22 (11%) | 36 (25.53%)†,‡ | <.001∗ |
| Dysphagia | 24 (5.50%) | 9 (4.50%) | 26 (18.44%)†,‡ | <.001∗ |
Data are presented as mean± SD for age and waistline, median (interquartile range: Q1 to Q3) for plasma markers, and n (%) for other categorical variables
Differences among groups were compared using one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni post-hoc test for age and waistline; Kruskal-Wallis test with Mann-Whitney U post-hoc test for plasma markers because the data were not normally distributed; Pearson Chi-square or Fisher’ s exact test if any cell numbers were less than five in categorical ones.
GER = gastroesophageal reflux, GER-d = GER episodes noted, complicated with either mucosal erosions or strictures or both, over the distal esophagus, GER-s = GER episode observed, with smooth distal esophageal contour without mucosal erosions, strictures or scarring of the lower esophagus, Hs-CRP = high-sensitivity C- reactive protein, NA = not assessed, No GER = no reflux was observed, and the esophageal contour was smooth, r-GT = r-glutamyl transferase.
P < .05, indicates significant differences among groups.
P < 0.0167, indicates a significant difference compared with the †no GER.
P < 0.0167, indicates a significant difference compared with the ‡ GER-s group.