Socioeconomic status is associated with symptom severity and sickness absence in people with infectious intestinal disease in the UK

Table 1 Unadjusted distribution of each variable by NS-SEC category, for the two analysis samples (IID2 study 2008–9)

	Cases ≥5 years of age (n = 1915)					Cases school/working age (n = 1270)
	Percentage within each category of NS-SEC					Percentage within each category of NS-SEC
	Managerial/ professional	Intermediate	Routine/manual	p-value^a	All cases^b	Managerial/professional	Intermediate	Routine/ manual	p-value^a	All cases^b
	(n = 949)	(n = 330)	(n = 337)		(n = 1915)	(n = 662)	(n = 215)	(n = 228)		(n = 1270)
Age group (years)
5–14	12.2	9.4	9.5	0.342	10.6	17.5	14.4	14	0.337	16
15–24	4.4	5.2	7.4		5.2	6.3	7.9	11		7.9
25–44	24.1	22.7	23.7		22.9	34.6	34.9	35.1		34.5
45–64	36	36.7	33.5		35.1	41.5	42.8	39.9		41.7
65+	23.2	26.1	25.8		26.2
Male	38	32.7	45.1	0.004	37.9	39.7	37.2	49.6	0.014	41
Ethnicity Non-White	3.4	4.8	3.6	0.468	4	3.9	7	4.8	0.185	5.1
Rural residence	30.6	30	19	<0.001	28.8	30.3	28.4	20.6	0.019	27.6
Travelled before illness	14.3	10.3	7.7	0.004	11.9	15.6	13.1	7.9	0.013	12.9
Symptom severity
Mild	38.3	34.4	20.3	<0.001	24.5	40	36	20.7	<0.001	26.8
Moderate	34	33	35.5		24.9	36.7	32	38		27.1
Severe	27.7	32.6	44.2		23.4	23.3	32	41.3		22.1
Absent work/school	55.1	54.2	63	0.028	53.4	61.4	62.7	71.6	0.023	61

IID infectious intestinal disease, NS-SEC National Statistics Socioeconomic Classification, SD standard deviation
Figures expressed as percentages except where stated otherwise
^aStatistical significance of relationship between NS-SEC and each variable, tested using χ² test
^bTotal number of cases includes those with missing NS-SEC
Missing data (%) for cases ≥5 years and cases school/working age, respectively: NS-SEC 16 and 13; Urban/rural 0.1 and 0.2; Foreign travel 0.6 and 0.3; Symptom severity 27 and 24; Absence 3.6 and 2.7

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