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Table 1 Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics of participants by treatment group, reported as mean (standard deviation) unless otherwise specified
| Characteristics | Prolotherapy | Combined | Physiotherapy | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n = 40 | n = 40 | n = 40 | N = 120 | |
| Age, years | 49.2 (7.2) | 47.8 (7.0) | 51.0 (9.0) | 49.3 (7.8) |
| Women, N (%) | 18 (45%) | 18 (45%) | 16 (40%) | 52 (43%) |
| Duration, weeks median, (IQR) | 23.0 (22.0) | 19.5 (18.0) | 21.0 (43.0) | 22.0 (27.0) |
| Employment | ||||
| Manual work | 17 (42.5%) | 20 (50%) | 24 (60%) | 61 (50.8%) |
| Non-manual work | 19 (47.5%) | 13 (32.5%) | 11 (27.5%) | 43 (35.8%) |
| Not working | 4 (10%) | 7 (17.5%) | 5 (12.5%) | 16 (13.3%) |
| Previous episode of LE, N (%) | ||||
| 12 (30%) | 13 (33.3%) | 15 (37.5%) | 40 (33.6%) | |
| Progress trajectory before study, N (%) | ||||
| Better | 13 (33.3%) | 12 (30.0%) | 11 (28.9%) | 36 (30.8%) |
| Worse | 13 (33.3%) | 17 (42.5%) | 12 (31.6%) | 42 (35.9%) |
| Same | 13 (33.3%) | 11 (27.5%) | 15 (39.5%) | 39 (33.3%) |
| Affected side, N (%) | ||||
| Right | 28 (70%) | 19 (47.5%) | 24 (60%) | 71 (59.2%) |
| Left | 6 (15%) | 18 (45.0%) | 6 (15%) | 30 (25.0%) |
| Bilateral | 6 (15%) | 3 (7.5%) | 10 (25%) | 19 (15.8%) |
| Dominant side affected, Proportion (%) | ||||
| Dominance = Right | 32/36 (88.9%) | 22/38 (57.9%) | 32/36 (88.9%) | 86/110 (78.2%) |
| Dominance = Left | 3/4 (75.0%) | 2/2 (100.0%) | 3/4 (75.0%) | 8/10 (80.0%) |
| PRTEE, /100 | 31.6 (10.3) | 31.3 (10.8) | 33.5 (10.0) | 32.1 (10.3) |
| Pain at rest, /10 | 2.0 (1.6) | 1.8 (1.6) | 2.1 (2.0) | 1.9 (1.7) |
| Worst pain, /10 | 7.4 (1.6) | 6.1 (2.4) | 7.3 (2.0) | 6.9 (2.1) |
| PFG, ratio affected/unaffected | 0.56 (0.34) | 0.55 (0.32) | 0.64 (0.55) | 0.58 (0.41) |
| EuroQoL, /100 | 82.6 (12.9) | 83.1 (11.2) | 80.4 (16.9) | 82.1 (13.7) |
