Table 1.
Distribution of demographic/anthropometric parameters and immunosuppressive treatment in cases (Blastocystis-positive patients) and in controls (Blastocystis-negative patients).
| Variable | Blastocystis-Positive Patients | Blastocystis-Negative Patients | p-Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geographical origin | <0.001 | ||
| Spain | 215/337 (63.8%) a | 2712/3343 (81.1%) b | |
| Rest of Europe | 33/337 (9.8%) a | 267/3343 (8.0%) a | |
| Africa | 48/337 (14.20%) a | 165/3343 (4.9%) b | |
| America | 30/337 (8.9%) a | 144/3343 (4.3%) b | |
| Asia | 11/337 (3.3%) a | 55/3343 (1.6%) b | |
| Age groups | 0.140 | ||
| ≤16 years | 148/338 (43.8) | 1321/3344 (39.5%) | |
| >16 years | 190/338 (56.2%) | 2023/3344 (60.5%) | |
| Sex | 0.125 | ||
| Male | 180/338 (53.3%) | 1629/3344 (48.7%) | |
| Female | 158/338 (46.7%) | 1715/3344 (51.3%) | |
| Categorized BMI | <0.001 | ||
| Underweight (<18.4) | 95/276 (34.4%) a | 266/2349 (11.3%) b | |
| Normal (18.5–24.9) | 92/276 (33.3%) a | 939/2349 (40%) b | |
| Overweight (25–29.9) | 55/276 (19.9%) a | 891/2349 (37.9%) b | |
| Obesity 30–> 40 | 34/276 (12.3%) a | 253/2349 (10.8%) a | |
| Immunosuppressive treatment | |||
| Chemotherapy | 6/337 (1.8%) | 1/3344 (0%) | <0.001 |
| Monoclonal antibodies | 3/337 (0.9%) | 0/3344 (0%) | 0.001 |
| Antiretroviral drugs | 3/337 (0.9%) | 0/3344 (0%) | 0.001 |
| Nucleoside analogs | 1/337 (0.3%) | 47/3344 (1.4%) | 0.124 |
| Corticosteroids | 3/337 (0.9%) | 965/3344 (28.9%) | <0.001 |
| Age (years) * | 30.18 ± 1.294 | 36.11 ± 0.511 | <0.001 |
| BMI (Kg/m2) * | 21.21 (9.51) | 24.89 (5.10) | <0.001 |
* Quantitative variable. Data are reported as counts (%), except for age (years), which is described as the mean ± SE, and for BMI (kg/m2), which is summarized as median and interquartile range (IQR). a,b: Values within a row with different superscripts differ significantly at p < 0.050.