Table 3 Clinical characteristics and laboratory findings between patients with or without complications of human brucellosis
|  | Total N = 880 n (%) | Complicated N = 482 n (%) | Uncomplicated N = 398 n (%) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Symptoms and signs | ||||
 Fever | 466 (53.0) | 256 (53.1) | 210 (52.8) | 0.918 |
 Chills | 193 (21.9) | 104 (21.6) | 89 (22.4) | 0.779 |
 Fatigue | 626 (71.1) | 324 (67.2) | 302 (75.9) | 0.005 |
 Sweating | 437 (49.7) | 236 (49.0) | 201 (50.5) | 0.649 |
 Arthralgia | 732 (83.2) | 438 (90.9) | 294 (73.9) |  < 0.001 |
  Sacral | 166 (19.4) | 104 (21.9) | 62 (16.3) | 0.037 |
  Iliac | 162 (19.0) | 109 (23.0) | 53 (13.9) | 0.001 |
  Shoulder | 187 (21.9) | 117 (24.7) | 70 (18.4) | 0.027 |
  Knee | 319 (37.3) | 181 (38.2) | 138 (36.2) | 0.555 |
  Elbow | 131 (15.3) | 80 (16.9) | 51 (13.4) | 0.159 |
  Wrist | 93 (10.9) | 60 (12.7) | 33 (8.7) | 0.062 |
  Ankle | 107 (12.5) | 68 (14.4) | 39 (10.2) | 0.071 |
  Spine | 295 (34.5) | 202 (42.6) | 93 (24.4) |  < 0.001 |
 Myalgia | 246 (28.0) | 123 (25.5) | 123 (30.9) | 0.076 |
 Cough | 128 (14.6) | 79 (16.4) | 49 (12.3) | 0.088 |
 Inappetence | 322 (36.6) | 192 (39.8) | 130 (32.7) | 0.028 |
 Nausea | 94 (10.7) | 63 (13.1) | 31 (7.8) | 0.012 |
 Headache | 254 (28.9) | 143 (29.7) | 111 (27.9) | 0.562 |
 Orchialgia | 45 (5.1) | 40 (8.3) | 5 (1.3) |  < 0.001 |
 Weight loss | 273 (31.0) | 162 (33.6) | 111 (27.9) | 0.068 |
 Sleep disturbance | 82 (9.3) | 52 (10.8) | 30 (7.5) | 0.099 |
 Vomit | 35 (4.0) | 24 (5.0) | 11 (2.8) | 0.094 |
 Eye bulging pain | 38 (4.3) | 30 (6.2) | 8 (2.0) | 0.002 |
 Urgent micturition and frequent micturition | 41 (4.7) | 27 (5.6) | 14 (3.5) | 0.144 |
 Rashes | 3 (0.3) | 2 (0.4) | 1 (0.3) | 1.000 |
Hematologic | ||||
 Anemia | 121 (14.1) | 77 (16.4) | 44 (11.3) | 0.033 |
 Leukopenia | 111 (12.9) | 65 (13.8) | 46 (11.8) | 0.383 |
 Leukocytosis | 48 (5.6) | 30 (6.4) | 18 (4.6) | 0.265 |
 Thrombocytopenia | 29 (3.4) | 15 (3.2) | 14 (3.6) | 0.747 |
Serum biochemistry | ||||
 ALT > 40 U/L | 303 (34.9) | 173 (36.5) | 130 (33.0) | 0.281 |
 AST > 42 U/L | 200 (23.1) | 109 (23.0) | 91 (23.3) | 0.923 |
 Bilirubin > 18.6 μmol/L | 148 (17.2) | 88 (18.6) | 60 (15.4) | 0.207 |
 Urea nitrogen > 7.14 mmol/L | 86 (10.1) | 51 (10.9) | 35 (9.0) | 0.356 |
 Creatinine > 124 μmol/L | 2 (0.2) | 2 (0.4) | 0 | 0.504 |
Inflammatory markers | ||||
 CRP > 10 mg/L | 399 (48.9) | 258 (56.6) | 141 (39.2) | < 0.001 |
 ESR elevation | 415 (54.3) | 264 (62.0) | 151 (44.5) | < 0.001 |
Bacterial culture and serum-antibody-test | ||||
 Culture positive | 89 (10.1) | 33 (6.9) | 56 (14.1) | < 0.001 |
 SAT ≥ 200 | 666 (77.0) | 359 (76.1) | 307 (78.1) | 0.474 |
 SAT ≥ 400 | 387 (44.7) | 193 (40.9) | 194 (49.4) | 0.013 |