Table 1.
Cohort characteristics of frequent attenders (FA) with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS), FA with organic illness (OI) and general clinic population (Non-FA).
| Variable | FA/OI | FA/MUS | Non-FA | p-Value FA/OI vs. FA/MUS | p-Value Non-FA vs. FA/MUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of patients (N) | 305 | 264 | 11,361 | _ | _ |
| % From amongst FA | 53.6% | 46.4% | _ | _ | _ |
| Age, years | |||||
| Mean (SD) | 69.1 (14.4) | 56.4 (17.2) | 54.2 (22.0) | <0.001 | 0.10 |
| Median (IQR) | 72 (61, 79) | 57.5 (44, 67) | 55.0 (33.0, 73.0) | ||
| Sex (N, %) | |||||
| Male | 116 (38%) | 93 (35.2%) | 5334 (47%) | 0.49 | <0.001 |
| Female | 189 (62%) | 171 (64.8%) | 6027 (53%) | ||
| Medical background | |||||
| Diabetes | 141 (46.2%) | 69 (26.1%) | 1027 (9.1%) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Hypertension | 228 (74.8%) | 118 (44.7%) | 2073 (18.4%) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) | 21 (6.9%) | 13 (4.9%) | 137 (1.2%) | 0.33 | <0.001 |
| Smoking | 88 (28.9%) | 96 (36.4%) | 2098 (25.7%) | 0.06 | <0.001 |
| Illness distribution for FA/OI (multiple diagnoses were possible, so numbers exceed 100%) | |||||
| Ischaemic heart disease | 111 (36.4%) | ||||
| Congestive heart failure | 63 (20.7%) | ||||
| Cirrhosis | 4 (1.3%) | ||||
| Chronic bronchitis | 7 (2.3%) | ||||
| Dementia/Alzheimer/OMS | 23 (7.5%) | _ | _ | _ | _ |
| Psychoses | 18 (5.9%) | ||||
| Schizophrenia | 11 (3.6%) | ||||
| Malignancy | 138 (45.2%) | ||||
| Chronic renal failure | 93 (30.5%) | ||||
| Cerebrovascular accident | 45 (14.8%) | ||||