Table 3 Univariate analysis of characteristics in participants with strong or weak awareness of constipation, presented as the frequency or mean ± standard deviation (SD)
Items | Strong awareness of constipation (n = 1362) | Weak awareness of constipation (n = 1638) | P value* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Residential area | North (Tohoku, Hokkaido)/East (Kanto, Tokai, Koshinetsu)/West (Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu), n/n/n | 136/736/490 | 193/875/570 | 0.280 |
Age | Years, (mean ± SD) | 46.3 ± 12.9 | 46.0 ± 13.8 | 0.500 |
Sex | Female, (%) | 57.3 | 48.8 | < 0.001** |
BMI | kg/m2 (mean ± SD) | 21.4 ± 3.6 | 21.8 ± 3.5 | 0.001** |
Jobs and education | n | n | ||
Jobs, n (%) | Student | 15 (1.1%) | 20 (1.2%) | 0.850 |
Office worker | 619 (45.4%) | 750 (45.8%) | 0.870 | |
Self-employed | 108 (7.9%) | 129 (7.9%) | > 0.999 | |
Part-time worker | 191 (14.0%) | 234 (14.3%) | 0.870 | |
Retired or unemployed | 190 (14.0%) | 278 (17.0%) | 0.030** | |
Homemaker | 239 (17.5%) | 227 (13.9%) | 0.006** | |
Education, n (%) | Junior high school, High school | 647 (47.5%) | 715 (43.7%) | 0.010** |
Bachelor’s degree or over | 712 (52.3%) | 650 (39.7%) | 0.020** | |
Past history of disease | n | n | ||
Hypertension, n (%) | 161 (11.8%) | 241 (14.7%) | 0.020** | |
Type 2 diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 90 (6.6%) | 95 (5.8%) | 0.360 | |
Hyperlipidemia, n (%) | 153 (11.2%) | 185 (11.3%) | > 0.999 | |
Lesion in the stomach, duodenum or small intestine, n (%) | 131 (9.6%) | 160 (9.8%) | 0.900 | |
Inflammatory bowel disease, n (%) | 0 | 0 | ||
Hemorrhoids, n (%) | 161 (11.8%) | 234 (14.3%) | 0.051 | |
Diverticulum, n (%) | 11 (0.8%) | 24 (1.5%) | 0.120 | |
Gastrointestinal cancer, n (%) | 0 | 0 | ||
Cerebrovascular disease, n (%) | 32 (2.3%) | 28 (1.7%) | 0.240 | |
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, n (%) | 1 (0.1%) | 4 (0.2%) | 0.400 | |
Liver disease, n (%) | 27 (2.0%) | 35 (2.1%) | 0.800 | |
Kidney disease, n (%) | 31 (2.3%) | 31 (1.9%) | 0.520 | |
Abdominal surgery without appendectomy, n (%) | 0 | 0 | ||
Anemia, n (%) | 263 (19.3%) | 241 (14.7%) | < 0.001** | |
Past treatment history | ||||
Hypertensive drugs, n (%) | 123 (9.0%) | 167 (10.2%) | 0.290 | |
Insulin injections or hyperglycemia drugs, n (%) | 59 (4.3%) | 64 (3.9%) | 0.580 | |
Hyperlipidemia drugs, n (%) | 145 (10.6%) | 141 (8.6%) | 0.060 | |
Cerebrovascular disease, n (%) | 43 (3.2%) | 37 (2.3%) | 0.140 | |
Cardiovascular disease, n (%) | 47 (3.5%) | 35 (2.1%) | 0.030** | |
Chronic renal failure or history of dialysis, n (%) | 12 (0.9%) | 14 (0.9%) | > 0.999 | |
Depression or anxiety, n (%) | 157 (11.5%) | 157 (9.6%) | 0.090 | |
Lifestyle factors based on JHPI questionnaire | ||||
Smoking more than 100 sticks per month, n (%) | 197 (14.5%) | 236 (14.4%) | 0.920 | |
Alcohol consumption, n (%) | 804 (59.0%) | 998 (60.9%) | 0.310 | |
Body weight increased by 10 kg or more from the age of 20, n (%) | 315 (23.1%) | 359 (21.9%) | 0.430 | |
Exercising for more than 30 min twice a week for at least 1 year | 259 (19.0%) | 360 (22.0%) | 0.040** | |
Walking for 1 h/d, n (%) | 520 (38.2%) | 614 (37.5%) | 0.730 | |
Walking faster than other people of the same age, n (%) | 463 (34.0%) | 621 (37.9%) | 0.030** | |
Eating faster than other people, n (%) | 520 (38.2%) | 614 (37.5%) | 0.730 | |
Having dinner within 2 h before going to sleep at least 3 times a week, n (%) | 417 (30.6%) | 442 (27.0%) | 0.030** | |
Eating snacks after dinner at least 3 times a week, n (%) | 439 (32.2%) | 441 (26.9%) | 0.002** | |
Skipping breakfast at least 3 times a week, n (%) | 379 (27.8%) | 405 (24.7%) | 0.060 | |
Insufficient sleep, n (%) | 821 (60.3%) | 909 (55.5%) | 0.010** | |
Rome III criteria question items | ||||
Improvement with defecation, n (%) | 964 (70.8%) | 1163 (71.0%) | 0.904 | |
Onset associated with a change in frequency of stool, n (%) | 789 (57.9%) | 957 (58.4%) | 0.795 | |
Onset associated with a change in form or appearance of stool, n (%) | 753 (55.3%) | 961 (58.7%) | 0.064 | |
Straining during at least 25% of defecation, n (%) | 989 (72.6%) | 1050 (64.1%) | < 0.001** | |
Lumpy or hard stool at least 25% of defecations, n (%) | 933 (68.5%) | 959 (58.5%) | < 0.001** | |
Sensation of incomplete evacuation for at least 25% of defecation, n (%) | 1040 (76.4%) | 1018 (62.1%) | < 0.001** | |
Sensation of hardly any evacuation, n (%) | 1119 (82.2%) | 1172 (71.6%) | < 0.001** | |
Manual maneuvers to facilitate digital evacuation at least 25% of defecation, n (%) | 95 (7.0%) | 67 (4.1%) | 0.001** | |
Manual maneuvers to facilitate support of the pelvic floor at least 25% of defecation, n (%) | 222 (16.3%) | 161 (9.8%) | < 0.001** | |
Loose stools are rarely present without the use of laxatives, n (%) | 753 (55.3%) | 352 (21.5%) | < 0.001** | |
Quality of life (SF-8) | ||||
GH† (mean ± SD) | 45.5 ± 8.1 | 46.8 ± 7.4 | < 0.001** | |
PF‡ (mean ± SD) | 46.2 ± 9.8 | 47.5 ± 8.3 | < 0.001** | |
RP§ (mean ± SD) | 47.6 ± 8.2 | 48.3 ± 7.6 | 0.003** | |
BP¶ (mean ± SD) | 47.9 ± 8.9 | 48.5 ± 8.3 | 0.041** | |
VT†† (mean ± SD) | 46.0 ± 8.2 | 47.2 ± 7.5 | < 0.001** | |
SF‡‡ (mean ± SD) | 45.4 ± 10.8 | 46.6 ± 9.4 | < 0.001** | |
MH§§ (mean ± SD) | 46.6 ± 8.8 | 48.0 ± 7.7 | < 0.001** | |
RE¶¶ (mean ± SD) | 43.0 ± 11.1 | 43.5 ± 10.6 | 0.169 | |
PCS††† (mean ± SD) | 46.5 ± 7.8 | 47.3 ± 7.1 | 0.003** | |
MCS‡‡‡ (mean ± SD) | 44.0 ± 9.7 | 45.1 ± 8.7 | 0.001** | |