Table 1.
Demographic data and selected comorbidities of the study subjects.
| Variables | All | Non-CHMs users | CHMs users | p-value* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n = 26,743(%) | n = 26,743(%) | |||
| Age (yr) | 0.44 | |||
| ≤50 | 28,771 (53.8) | 14,341 (53.6) | 14,430 (54.0) | |
| >50 | 24,715 (46.2) | 12,402 (46.4) | 12,313 (46.0) | |
| Mean (SD) | 48.5 ± 12.4 | 48.5 ± 12.3 | 48.5 ± 12.5 | 0.97 |
| Gender | 0.69 | |||
| Female | 34,224 (64.0) | 17,090 (63.9) | 17,134 (64.1) | |
| Male | 19,262 (36.0) | 9,653 (36.1) | 9,609 (35.9) | |
| Monthly income | 0.40 | |||
| Low | 24,988 (46.7) | 12,417 (46.4) | 12,571 (47.0) | |
| Median | 26,037 (48.7) | 13,095 (49.0) | 12,942 (48.4) | |
| High | 2,461 (4.6) | 1,231 (4.6) | 1,230 (4.6) | |
| Residential area | 0.96 | |||
| Urban | 30,911 (57.8) | 15,454 (57.8) | 15,457 (57.8) | |
| Suburban | 8,420 (15.7) | 4,221 (15.8) | 4,199 (15.7) | |
| Rural | 14,155 (26.5) | 7,068 (26.4) | 7,087 (26.5) | |
| CCI | 0.28 | |||
| Mean (SD) | 4.0 (6.7) | 3.9 (6.6) | 4.0 (6.8) |
CHMs, Chinese herbal medicines; SD: standard deviation; CCI, Charlson-Deyo comorbidity index.
*
All p-values were derived from chi-square test, except for CCI that was calculated with independent Student's t-test.