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. 2017 Oct 15;7(10):e017620. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-017620

Table 4.

The proportion of contacts to professional, personal and ‘use of neither personal nor professional’ relation with regard to the 44 different symptom experiences

Type of symptom Number of symptoms Use of professional relations Use of personal relations Use of neither personal nor professional
N n (%) n (%) n (%)
Tiredness 23 880 8040 (33.7) 19 505 (81.7) 3890 (16.3)
Night-time urination 23 337 4565 (19.6) 14 266 (61.1) 8456 (36.2)
Lack of energy 17 952 5878 (32.7) 14 026 (78.1) 3460 (19.3)
Headache 17 564 6438 (36.6) 13 135 (74.8) 3900 (22.2)
Back pain 15 474 10 809 (69.8) 13 478 (87.1) 1363 (8.8)
Abdominal bloating 14 238 3627 (25.5) 9074 (63.7) 4687 (32.9)
Memory problems 9480 3010 (31.7) 7345 (77.5) 1903 (20.1)
Abdominal pain 9365 4150 (44.3) 7434 (79.4) 1627 (17.4)
Coughing 8535 2899 (33.9) 5579 (65.4) 2575 (30.2)
Concentration problems 8728 2972 (34.1) 5817 (69.6) 2240 (26.8)
Change in stool texture 8207 2216 (27.0) 4049 (49.3) 3662 (44.6)
Dizziness 7604 3570 (46.9) 5687 (74.8) 1592 (20.9)
Feeling unwell 7160 2814 (39.3) 5954 (83.2) 984 (13.7)
Constipation 6980 1885 (27.0) 3251 (46.6) 3279 (47.0)
Increase in waist circumference 6308 1385 (22.0) 4195 (66.5) 1928 (30.6)
Change in stool frequency 6199 1654 (26.7) 3232 (52.1) 2632 (42.5)
Diarrhoea 6184 1730 (28.0) 3401 (55.0) 2469 (39.9)
Nausea 6007 2098 (34.9) 4559 (75.9) 1248 (20.8)
Swollen legs 5850 3154 (53.9) 4342 (74.2) 1112 (19.0)
Difficulty in emptying the bladder 5546 2106 (38.0) 2935 (52.9) 2143 (38.6)
Frequent urination 5024 1836 (36.5) 3108 (61.9) 1616 (32.2)
Stress incontinence 4658 1352 (29.0) 2633 (56.5) 1765 (37.9)
Erectile dysfunction* 4161 1743 (41.8) 3030 (72.8) 909 (21.8)
Pelvic pain* 3848 1505 (39.1) 2595 (67.4) 1081 (28.1)
Shortness of breath 3789 2520 (66.5) 2994 (79.0) 537 (14.2)
Hoarseness 3654 1.036 (28.3) 2227 (60.9) 1264 (34.6)
Urge incontinence 2952 1118 (37.9) 1861 (63.0) 897 (30.4)
Loss of appetite 2949 902 (30.6) 1900 (64.4) 922 (31.3)
Blood in stool/rectal bleeding 2191 1.002 (45.7) 1267 (57.8) 744 (34.0)
Pelvic pain during intercourse* 2037 784 (38.5) 1609 (79.0) 359 (17.6)
Fever 1905 642 (33.7) 1507 (79.1) 324 (17.0)
Difficulty swallowing 1645 818 (49.7) 1215 (73.9) 340 (20.7)
Weight loss 1407 520 (37.0) 1044 (74.2) 314 (22.3)
Incontinence without stress/urge 1102 547 (49.6) 654 (59.3) 332 (30.1)
Pain/burning when urinating 997 594 (59.6) 654 (65.6) 243 (24.4)
Lump/swollen lymph nodes 784 413 (52.7) 543 (69.3) 185 (23.6)
Black stool 740 194 (26.2) 246 (33.2) 429 (58.0)
Vaginal bleeding after intercourse* 600 258 (47.5) 456 (76.0) 110 (18.3)
Repeated vomiting 600 300 (50.0) 502 (83.7) 75 (12.5)
Postmenopausal bleeding* 342 156 (45.6) 217 (63.5) 99 (28.9)
Blood in urine 272 233 (85.7) 217 (79.8) 27 (9.9)
Blood in semen* 90 57 (63.3) 51 (56.7) 27 (30.0)
Coughing up blood 59 35 (59.3) 41 (69.5) 13 (22.0)
Blood in vomit 43 20 (46.5) 30 (69.8) 12 (27.9)

The total number of symptom experiences was 260 079.

*Gender-specific symptoms.