Table 2 Clinicopathological characteristics of study subjects
| Â | Malignant pleural effusion N = 52 | Benign pleural effusion N = 23 | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|
Age, years | Â | Â | Â |
 Median | 68 | 73 |  |
 Range | 30 – 94 | 41 – 92 |  |
 < 60 years of age | 12 (23) | 4 (17) | 0.762 |
 > 60 years of age | 40 (77) | 19 (83) |  |
Gender, n (%) | Â | Â | Â |
 Male | 31 (60) | 17 (74) | 0.301 |
 Female | 21 (40) | 6 (26) |  |
Smoking status, n (%) | Â | Â | Â |
 Current or Former | 33 (63) | 17 (84) | 0.435 |
 Never | 19 (37) | 6 (26) |  |
Pleural fluid, median (IQR) | Â | Â | Â |
 Protein, g/L | 43.5 (37.0 – 48.0) | 40 (31.8 – 45.8) |  |
 LDH, IU/L | 390 (198.5 – 926.5) | 222 (168 – 322) |  |
 Glucose, mmol/L | 6 (4 -7) | 6 (4 – 8) |  |
Light’s criteria classification, n (%) |  |  |  |
 Transudate | 5 (10) | 2 (9) | 1.00 |
 Exudate | 47 (90) | 21 (91) |  |
Pleural fluid cytology, n (%) | Â | Â | Â |
 Positive for malignancy | 29 (56) | 0 (0) | <0.001 |
 Negative for malignancy | 23 (44) | 23 (100) |  |