Table 1. Behavioral and environmental data for counties with low, medium, and high rates of diverticulitis.
| Low diverticulitis counties (n = 34) | Moderate diverticulitis counties (n = 35) | High diverticulitis counties (n = 34) | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (%) | 20,649,778 (31.2) | 22,409,651 (33.9) | 23,113,522 (34.9) | |
| 3-y diverticulitis count (%) | 26,651 (16.7) | 49,616 (31.0) | 83,715 (52.3) | |
| Range of diverticulitis rate (per 100,000) | 9.1–69.6 | 70.1–95.5 | 96.3–149.0 | |
| Median diverticulitis rate (per 100,000) | 60.3 | 75.3 | 108.3 | |
| Characteristics | ||||
| Teeth removal | 37.5 ± 8.0% | 41.8 ± 9.3% | 45.8 ± 5.7% | 0.0001 |
| Dental cleaning | 86.2 ± 4.8% | 85.8 ± 4.3% | 86.1 ± 5.1% | 0.9 |
| Air quality | 20.4 ± 3.0% | 10.8 ± 3.8% | 20.6 ± 3.4% | 0.9 |
| Smoking | 18.2 ± 5.3% | 20.5 ± 3.8% | 20.1 ± 3.6% | 0.06 |
| Alcohol | 55.0 ± 13.1% | 54.9 ± 9.5% | 57.6 ± 10.6% | 0.5 |
| Vaccine | 21.2 ± 3.3% | 20.2 ± 3.3% | 21.3 ± 3.8% | 0.3 |
| Sunburn | 39.9 ± 9.8% | 32.4 ± 9.8% | 30.8 ± 7.0% | <0.0001 |
| Vitamins | 17.7 ± 27.9% | 25.6 ± 30.1% | 18.6 ± 27.5% | 0.4 |
| Mental health | 35.3 ± 4.2% | 33.0 ± 4.7% | 33.0 ± 4.4% | 0.05 |
Notes: Behavioral and environmental data from the 2004 SMART BRFSS. The 3-y diverticulitis count for the state of Utah was projected based on data from 2003 and 2004.