Table 1.
Intergroup comparison at baseline. Values are expressed as numbers with percentages in parenthesis unless stated otherwise.
| Characteristics | STE Group (n = 40) |
UE Group (n = 40) |
Total Sample (n = 80) |
p-Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age years, Median (IQI) | 53.5 (58.8–47.0) | 54.5 (63.0–48.5) | 54.0 (62.0–47.3) | 0.846 |
| Education level, frequency (%) |
||||
| Basic | 1 (2.5) | 0 (0) | 1 (1.3) | 0.626 |
| Primary education | 13 (32.5) | 11 (27.5) | 24 (30.0) | |
| Secondary education | 16 (40.0) | 16 (40.0) | 32 (40.0) | |
| Pre-university | 5 (12.5) | 9 (22.5) | 14 (17.5) | |
| University or HNUE | 5 (12.5) | 4 (10.0) | 9 (11.3) | |
| Currently employed, frequency (%) | 16 (40.0) | 18 (45.0) | 34 (42.5) | 0.821 |
| Surgical procedure, frequency (%) |
||||
| Mastectomy | 0 (0) | 1 (2.5) | 1 (1.3) | 0.542 |
| Quadrantectomy | 11 (27.5) | 5 (12.5) | 16 (20) | |
| Tumorectomy | 29 (72.5) | 34 (85) | 63 (78.8) | |
| Axillary dissection procedure frequency (%) |
||||
| ALND | 38 (95) | 40 (100) | 78 (97.5) | 0.473 |
| SLNB | 2 (5) | 0 (0) | 2 (2.5) | 0.472 |
| Postoperative complications frequency (%) |
||||
| Seroma | 0 (0) | 1 (2.5) | 1 (1.3) | 0.999 |
| SLT | 37 (92.5) | 33 (82.5) | 70 (87.5) | 0.310 |
| Lymphedema | 4 (10) | 2 (5) | 6 (7.5) | 0.671 |
| Postoperative therapy frequency (%) |
||||
| Radiotherapy | 40 (100) | 40 (100) | 80 (100) | |
| Chemotherapy | 38 (95) | 40 (100) | 78 (97.5) | 0.473 |
| Hormonal therapy | 32 (80) | 26 (65) | 58 (72.5) | 0.210 |
| Time (months) since treatment, Median (IQI) |
9 (5) | 7.5 (3.75) | 8 (5) | 0.110 |
| VAS (mm), (SD) | 5.60 (1.6) | 5.55 (1.5) | 5.57 (1.5) | 0.885 |
| 6MWD (m), (SD) | 349.50 (114.1) | 304.5 (113.2) | 327 (115.1) | 0.080 |
| FACIT-F, (SD) | 7.03 (1.7) | 6.33 (1.9) | 6.63 (1.8) | 0.086 |
STE: Supervised therapeutic exercise; UE: Unsupervised exercise; IQI: Interquartile interval; : mean; SD: Standard deviation; HNUE: Higher non-university education; ALND: Axillary lymph node dissection; SLNB: Sentinel lymph node biopsy; SLT: Superficial lymphatic thrombosis; VAS: Visual analogue scale; 6MWD: Six-minute walking distance; FACIT-F: Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue scale.