Statistical methods
Statistical analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 26.0 (SPSS IBM, Chicago, Illinois). All data were presented as continuous or categorical variables. Categorical data were expressed as total numbers and percentages. Continuous data were evaluated for normality using a one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and were expressed as the mean ± standard deviation (SD) in normally distributed or median (interquartile range) in cases of non-normally distributed continuous variables. Univariate analysis was performed using either Student t or Mann-Whitney U test for normally and non-normally distributed continuous variables, respectively. Pearson’s χ² or Fisher exact tests were used to comparing categorical data depending on the minimum expected count in each cross-tab. P values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. We performed a linear regression analysis with ANOVA for further analysis of the variable’s effect. Subgroup analysis of male gender was performed.