Increased population prevalence of reflux and @entity28 in the United Kingdom compared with Sweden: a potential explanation for the difference in incidence of XXXX .

@entity1 @entity286 @entity28 @entity304 @entity354 @entity420
OBJECTIVES: The incidence of @entity420 is five times higher in the UK than in Sweden. We examined the prevalence of established risk factors for @entity420 in both populations. METHODS: A population-based cross-sectional study comparing the prevalence of @entity354 , @entity28 , and @entity286 smoking between random samples of the English and Swedish populations aged 40-59 years. Data were collected through self-report questionnaires. Multivariable logistic regression yielded odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals, adjusting for potential confounding. RESULTS: The sample was composed of 3633 English and 1483 Swedish @entity1 (response rates 43 and 62%, respectively). The prevalence of @entity304 occurring at least weekly was twice as common in the English compared with the Swedish sample. Obesity (BMI >= 30) was also nearly two-fold more common in the English sample. The frequency of @entity286 smoking was similar in both countries. The combination of @entity304 and a BMI of at least 25 was three-fold more common in the English than in the Swedish sample. CONCLUSION: The substantially higher prevalence of @entity304 and @entity28 in samples of the English population compared with the Swedish population might contribute to the known higher incidence of @entity420 in the UK.
