Socio-economic status and lifestyle factors are associated with achalasia risk: A population-based case-control study

Table 1 Descriptive characteristics of achalasia cases and matched controls n (%)

Characteristics	Achalasia cases	Controls
	n = 151	n = 117	P value
Age, yr (mean ± SD)	55.9 ± 17.1	55.8 (16.0)	0.97
Age at diagnosis (mean ± SD)	47.6 ± 17.8	/	/
Sex
Male	76 (50.3)	55 (47.0)
Female	75 (49.7)	62 (53.0)	0.59
Previous medical history
Ischaemic heart disease	12 (8.0)	7 (6.0)	0.53
Diabetes Mellitus	4 (2.7)	3 (2.6)	0.97
Hypertension	27 (17.9)	17 (14.5)	0.46
Hypercholesterolaemia	16 (10.6)	12 (10.3)	0.93
Asthma/COPD	11 (7.3)	4 (3.4)	0.17
Gastritis/Peptic ulcer	19 (12.6)	8 (6.8)	0.12
Autoimmune/Connective Tissue Disorders	1 (0.7)	1 (0.9)	0.86
Family history of achalasia	5 (3.3)	0 (0.0)	0.05
Number of years in education (mean, SD)	12.5 (3.3)	12.8 (3.1)	0.34
Occupation class
High	39 (25.8)	45 (38.5)
Medium	47 (31.1)	32 (27.4)
Low	55 (36.4)	34 (29.1)
Not classified	10 (6.6)	6 (5.1)	0.17

COPD: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder.