Table 4.
Reported categories of perceived causes for respondents with pre-ulcers and ulcers
| Perceived causes | Pre-ulcers, N = 15 | Ulcers, N = 166 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |
Total % |
Spon. % |
Most important % |
Mean Prominence |
Total % |
Spon.% |
Most important % |
Mean Prominence |
P-values |
||
|
Ingestion |
53.3 |
26.7 |
6.7 |
1.00 |
33.7 |
11.5 |
4.2 |
0.58 |
|
||
| Drinking unclean water |
53.3 |
26.7 |
6.7 |
1.00 |
33.7 |
11.5 |
4.2 |
0.58 |
|
||
|
Illness/ Injury |
20.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.20 |
44.0 |
27.1 |
9.0 |
0.98 |
* |
||
| Prone to illness |
13.3 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.13 |
13.9 |
4.8 |
0.6 |
0.20 |
|
||
| Insect bites |
13.3 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.13 |
7.2 |
2.4 |
0.6 |
0.11 |
|
||
| Scratches on skin |
13.3 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.13 |
14.5 |
7.2 |
1.8 |
0.27 |
|
||
| Weakness of blood |
20.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.20 |
38.6 |
24.1 |
6.0 |
0.81 |
|
||
|
Environmental |
40.0 |
6.7 |
0.0 |
0.47 |
34.3 |
15.7 |
4.2 |
0.63 |
|
||
| Poor sanitation |
40.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.40 |
27.7 |
10.2 |
1.2 |
0.42 |
|
||
| Poor personal hygiene |
26.7 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.27 |
21.1 |
5.4 |
2.4 |
0.34 |
|
||
| Exposure to sand |
20.0 |
6.7 |
0.0 |
0.27 |
23.5 |
7.8 |
0.6 |
0.33 |
|
||
|
Behaviour |
60.0 |
40.0 |
53.3 |
2.60 |
48.2 |
28.9 |
18.1 |
1.31 |
|
||
| Swimming in ponds and rivers |
60.0 |
40.0 |
53.3 |
2.60 |
43.4 |
25.9 |
18.1 |
1.23 |
* |
||
| Contact with animals |
6.7 |
6.7 |
0.0 |
0.13 |
9.0 |
3.0 |
0.0 |
0.12 |
|
||
|
Spiritual |
20.0 |
6.7 |
0.0 |
0.27 |
64.5 |
51.2 |
39.7 |
2.35 |
** |
||
| Witchcraft |
20.0 |
6.7 |
0.0 |
0.27 |
64.5 |
51.2 |
39.7 |
2.35 |
** |
||
|
Miscellaneous |
46.7 |
46.7 |
40.0 |
2.13 |
31.9 |
31.9 |
24.7 |
1.38 |
|
||
| Cuts, abrasions, unexplained swelling of limbs |
13.3 |
13.3 |
13.3 |
0.67 |
8.4 |
8.4 |
6.6 |
0.37 |
|
||
| Cannot say/ uncertain | 33.3 | 33.3 | 26.7 | 1.47 | 24.1 | 24.1 | 18.1 | 1.02 | |||
Categories reported by less than 5% of respondents were not included in the table. Grouped categories (in bold) computed from responses. Columns indicate total reported responses in percentages, spontaneously reported responses in percentages and the mean prominence. Total reported values include combined spontaneous and probed responses. The mean prominence was calculated based on assigned values to each reported category (3 = Most important perceived cause, 2 = spontaneous response, 1 = probed response, 0 = not reported). The Wilcoxon ranksum test was used to compare mean prominence for pre-ulcers and ulcers (*p ≤ 0.05, **p ≤ 0.01, ***p ≤ 0.001).