Descriptors of Patients with Clinically Significant Dysphagia (a Minimum of Several Times Per Month) and without Dysphagia (n = 947)*
| Total n (%) | No. Patients with Dysphagia (%)† | No. Patients without Dysphagia (%)† | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients with dysphagia | 214 (22.6) | |||
| Patients without dysphagia | 733 (77.4) | |||
| Age (mean ± SD) | 48.1 (14.4)‡ | 45.7 (16.6) | ||
| Gender | ||||
| Male | 41 (19.2)§ | 213 (29.1) | ||
| Female | 173 (80.8)§ | 519 (70.1) | ||
| Ethnicity | ||||
| Hispanic | 4 (2.1) | 23 (3.6) | ||
| Non-Hispanic | 183 (97.9) | 624 (96.4) | ||
| Race | ||||
| African American | 90 (43.1) | 281 (39.2) | ||
| White | 115 (55.0) | 426 (59.3) | ||
| Other | 4 (1.9) | 11 (1.5) | ||
| Frequency of dysphagia | ||||
| Several times per month | 106 (49.5) | |||
| Several times per week | 68 (31.8) | |||
| Several times per day | 40 (18.7) | |||
| Duration | ||||
| <1 year | 56 (26.8) | |||
| 1 to 5 years | 99 (47.4) | |||
| 5 or more years | 54 (25.8) | |||
| Consistency of food associated with dysphagia | ||||
| Solids only | 101 (49.0) | |||
| Liquids only | 13 (6.3) | |||
| Both solids and liquids | 92 (44.7) | |||
| Patients with dysphagia who do not take medication for their symptoms | 126 (60.6) | |||
| Patients with dysphagia who have not had a diagnostic test for their symptoms | 136 (65.1) | |||
| Concerned about dysphagia | 136 (63.6) |
* Numbers do not include missing data.
† Percentages are within demographic group. For example, 19.2% of male patients reported dysphagia.
‡ Patients with dysphagia were significantly older than patients without dysphagia (P = .001).
§ Gender difference in dysphagia is significant (P = .002).