Table 1.
Patient characteristics
| Patient characteristics | Number (%) |
|---|---|
| Age group | |
| < 20 years | 9 (9%) |
| 21–30 years | 25 (25%) |
| 31–40 years | 19 (19%) |
| 41–50 years | 15 (15%) |
| 51–60 years | 20 (20%) |
| > 60 years | 12 (12%) |
| Gender | |
| Male | 54 (54%) |
| Female | 46 (46%) |
| Occupation | |
| Housewife | 31 (31%) |
| Student | 13 (13%) |
| Labourer | 13 (13%) |
| Self-employed | 12 (12%) |
| Below clerk level | 12 (12%) |
| Clerk level and above | 11 (11%) |
| Skilled professional | 7 (7%) |
| Unemployed | 1 (1%) |
| Duration of symptoms | |
| ≤ 6 months | 38 (38%) |
| 7–12 months | 13 (13%) |
| 13–60 months | 27 (27%) |
| > 60 months | 22 (22%) |
| Presenting complaint | |
| Nasal obstruction | 29 (29%) |
| Ear discharge | 25 (25%) |
| Headache | 17 (17%) |
| Sore throat | 14 (14%) |
| Excessive sneezing | 13 (13%) |
| Hearing loss | 7 (7%) |
| Blocked ear | 7 (7%) |
| Swelling in neck | 7 (7%) |
| Change in voice | 5 (5%) |
| Tinnitus | 5 (5%) |
| Giddiness | 4 (4%) |
| Otalgia | 4 (4%) |
| Oral ulcer | 2 (2%) |
| Epiphora | 2 (2%) |
| Dysphagia | 1 (1%) |
| Comorbidities | |
| Hypertension | 7 (7%) |
| Migraine | 7 (7%) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 6 (6%) |
| Bronchial asthma | 3 (3%) |
| Hypothyroidism | 3 (3%) |
| Human immunodeficiency virus infection | 1 (1%) |
| Chronic liver disease | 1 (1%) |
| Systemic lupus erythematosus | 1 (1%) |
| Habits | |
| Alcohol consumption | 16 (16%) |
| Smoking | 7 (7%) |
| Tobacco chewing | 2 (2%) |
| Otolaryngology diagnosis | |
| Chronic otitis media | 26 (26%) |
| Allergic rhinitis | 15 (15%) |
| Chronic rhinosinusitis | 12 (12%) |
| Deviated nasal septum | 7 (7%) |
| Chronic tonsillitis | 6 (6%) |
| Chronic laryngitis/ laryngopharyngeal reflux | 4 (4%) |
| Multinodular goitre | 4 (4%) |
| Sensorineural hearing loss | 4 (4%) |
| Chronic lymphadenitis | 3 (3%) |
| Vocal cord pathology | 3 (3%) |
| Oral aphthous ulcer | 2 (2%) |
| Chronic dacryocystitis | 1 (1%) |
| Chronic sialadenitis | 1 (1%) |
| Chronic otitis externa | 1 (1%) |
| Temporomandibular joint arthralgia | 1 (1%) |
| Globus pharyngeus | 1 (1%) |
| Nil otolaryngology | 9 (9%) |
| Diagnosis based on PHQ-9 | |
| Control | 82 |
| Major Depressive Disorder | 7 |
| Other Depressive Disorder | 11 |
| Severity of depressive symptoms | |
| Nil | 14 |
| Minimal | 35 |
| Mild | 36 |
| Moderate | 11 |
| Moderately Severe | 3 |
| Severe | 1 |