Table 1.
Baseline characteristics
| Total (n = 104) | Group I (n = 35) | Group II (n = 34) | Group III (n = 35) | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 94 (90.38%) | 32 (91.4%) | 33 (97.1%) | 29 (82.9%) | 0.151b |
| Female | 10 (9.62%) | 3 (8.6%) | 1 (2.9%) | 6 (17.1%) | |
| Age (years) | 69.29 (8.15) | 67.37 (9.55) | 70.53 (7.80) | 70.20 (6.69) | 0.208c |
| BMI (kg/m2)* | 103 (99.04%) | 26.82 (2.94) | 26.58 (4.04) | 27.74 (4.82) | 0.447c |
| BMI > 30 kg/m2 | 22 (21.15%) | 6 (17.1) | 7 (20.6) | 9 (25.7) | 0.677a |
| Smoker | 49 (47.12%) | 13 (38.2%) | 20 (58.8%) | 16 (45.7%) | 0.227a |
| Daily number of cigarettes** | 43 (41.35%)* | 18 (9.03) | 19 (14.49) | 12 (5.94) | 0.200c |
| Alcohol consumption | 68 (65.38%) | 22 (62.9%) | 23 (69.7%) | 23 (69.7%) | 0.784a |
| Frequency of alcohol consumption | |||||
| Less than once weekly | 15 (14.42%) | 5 (22.7%) | 4 (17.4%) | 6 (26.1%) | 0.488b |
| Once weekly | 18 (17.31%) | 8 (36.4%) | 4 (17.4%) | 6 (26.1%) | |
| 2–6 weekly | 23 (22.12%) | 4 (18.2%) | 11 (47.8%) | 8 (34.8%) | |
| Daily | 12 (11.54%) | 5 (22.7%) | 4 (17.4%) | 3 (13.0) | |
| Insulin-dependent diabetes | 4 (3.85%) | 2 (5.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 2 (5.9%) | 0.542b |
| COPD | 16 (15.38%) | 7 (20.0%) | 4 (12.5%) | 5 (15.2%) | 0.696a |
| ASA classification | 1.000b | ||||
| II | 41 (39.43%) | 14 (40.0%) | 14 (41.2%) | 13 (38.2%) | |
| III | 61 (58.65%) | 20 (57.1%) | 20 (58.8%) | 21 (61.8%) | |
| IV | 1 (0.96%) | 1 (2.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | |
| Unspecified | 1 (0.96%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (2.9%) | |
| Cardiovascular diseases | 65 (62.50%) | 27 (77.1%) | 17 (51.5%) | 21 (61.8%) | 0.086a |
| Pulmonary diseases | 15 (14.42%) | 7 (20.6%) | 3 (9.1%) | 5 (14.7%) | 0.417a |
| Gastrointestinal diseases | 11 (10.58%) | 4 (11.4%) | 3 (9.4%) | 4 (11.8%) | 1.000b |
| Diseases of the urinary tract | 12 (11.54%) | 3 (8.6%) | 6 (18.2%) | 3 (8.8%) | 0.474b |
| Hemato-oncologic diseases | 3 (2.88%) | 1 (2.9%) | 1 (3.0%) | 1 (2.9%) | 1.000b |
| Endocrine diseases | 23 (22.12%) | 8 (22.9%) | 8 (24.2%) | 7 (20.6%) | 0.937a |
| Immune mediated diseases | 1 (0.96%) | 1 (2.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1.000b |
| Skin diseases | 6 (5.77%) | 2 (5.7%) | 3 (9.1%) | 1 (2.9%) | 0.522b |
| Disorders of muscle, skeleton and connective tissue | 9 (8.65%) | 2 (5.9%) | 2 (6.1%) | 5 (14.7%) | 0.499b |
| Malignancies | 7 (6.73%) | 0 (0.0%) | 5 (15.6%) | 2 (5.9%) | 0.030b |
| Previous surgery*** | 84 (80.77%) | 31 (88.6%) | 29 (85.3%) | 24 (68.6%) | 0.075a |
| Further diseases influencing wound healing | 2 (1.92%) | 1 (3.1%) | 1 (3.2%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.544b |
Data are number of patients (%) or mean (SD). Bold indicates test for even distribution between the groups by Chi2 test (a), Fisher’s exact test (b) or One-way ANOVA (c). Indicator for unequally distributed baseline characteristics was a p value from ≤ .2
ASA American Society of Anesthesiologists, BMI body mass index, COPD chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
*Number of patients who submitted a statement to this effect is 103
**Number of patients who submitted a statement to this effect is 43
***Including 32 abdominal operations via approaches other than median laparotomy