Table 2.
Risk characteristics of the study groups, Northern Ethiopia, 2012
| Variable | Podoconiosis cases (%) | Healthy controls (%) | p-valuea | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alcohol | Ever consumed alcohol | Yes | 335 (96.8) | 331 (94.8) | NS |
| No | 11 (3.2) | 18 (5.2) | |||
| Currently consumes alcohol | Yes | 321 (92.8) | 326 (93.4) | NS | |
| No | 25 (7.2) | 23 (6.6) | |||
| Current consumption (last 30 days) | Never | 30 (8.7) | 33 (9.5) | 0.001 | |
| Once | 28 (8.1) | 28 (8.0) | |||
| 1–2×/week | 155 (44.8) | 146 (41.8) | |||
| 3–4×/week | 81 (23.4) | 52 (14.9) | |||
| Daily | 51 (14.7) | 90 (25.8) | |||
| Khat | Ever chewed khat | Yes | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.3) | NS |
| No | 346 (100.0) | 348 (99.7) | |||
| Currently chew khat | Yes | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.3) | NS | |
| No | 346 (100) | 348 (99.7) | |||
| Cigarettes | Ever smoked cigarettes | Yes | 1 (0.3) | 1 (0.3) | NS |
| No | 345 (99.7) | 348 (99.7) | |||
| Currently smoke cigarette | Yes | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | NA | |
| No | 346 (100.0) | 349 (100.0) | |||
| Family history of mental health problems | Yes | 6 (1.7) | 4 (1.1) | NS | |
| No | 340 (98.3) | 344 (98.9) | |||
| Physical health condition other than podoconiosis | Yes | 64 (18.5) | 29 (8.3) | <0.001 | |
| No | 282 (81.5) | 320 (91.7) | |||
| Health conditions | Arthritis | 17 (4.9) | 3 (0.9) | ||
| Eye or visual condition | 3 (0.9) | 2 (0.6) | |||
| Asthma | 0 | 2 (0.6) | |||
| Hypertension | 2 (0.6) | 1 (0.3) | |||
| Headache | 13 (3.8) | 2 (0.6) | |||
| Cancer | 0 | 1 (0.3) | |||
| Tuberculosis | 4 (1.2) | 1 (0.3) | |||
| Other | 25 (18.5) | 16 (4.6) | |||
| Patients who perceive themselves as mentally ill | Yes | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | NA | |
| No | 344 (100.0) | 349 (100.0) | |||
| Mental distress, mean (SD) | 15.92 (6.18) | 14.49 (6.01) | <0.001b | ||
| Stigma mean (possible ranging from 0 to 96) | 30.7 | NA | |||
NA: not applicable, NS: not significant.
a p-values are χ2 test unless stated.
b t test.