Loneliness during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Patients with Burning Mouth Syndrome: A Multicentric Case-Control Italian Study
Table 3
Prevalence of COVID-19 infection and covariates, social media use, use across categories of healthcare services, socioeconomic satisfaction, and the subjective feeling of social loneliness during the COVID-19 outbreak.
BMS
HC
value
COVID-19 infection and covariates
Frequency (%)
Frequency (%)
COVID-19 infection (yes)
28 (28)
38 (38)
0.176
Quarantine after COVID-19 infection (yes)
28 (28)
36 (36)
0.289
Quarantine for COVID-19 infection of relatives (yes)
23 (23)
23 (23)
1.000
Social media use
Frequency (%)
Frequency (%)
More time on the Internet after the pandemic (yes)
37 (37)
38 (38)
1.000
Time on Internet (hours)
Median [IQR]
Median [IQR]
Activities on Internet
2 [1-2.25]
1.25 [1-2.62]
0.628
Instant messaging
2.5 [0.75-3]
3 [2-3]
0.06
Social networking
1 [0-3]
2 [1-3]
0.017
Searching for information
3 [1.75-3]
3 [2-3]
0.146
Entertainment
1 [0-3]
1.5 [0-2]
0.816
Shopping online
0 [0-2]
1 [0-2]
0.156
Booking of travel/social events
0 [0-1]
1 [0-2]
0.018
Financial service blogging
0 [0-1.25]
0 [0-2]
0.148
Debating online/forums
0 [0-0]
0 [0-1]
0.014
Education/learning services
0 [0-2]
1 [0-3]
0.005
Healthcare services
Frequency (%)
Frequency (%)
Emergency care
24 (24)
20 (20)
0.609
Hospital
23 (23)
13 (13)
0.097
Primary care physician
57 (57)
32 (32)
0.001
Doctor on duty
10 (10)
6 (6)
0.435
Psychiatrist consultation
10 (10)
6 (6)
0.435
Psychologist consultation
15 (15)
8 (8)
0.183
Others
66 (66)
46 (46)
0.007
Level of socioeconomic satisfaction
Median [IQR]
Median [IQR]
[0-6]
3 [2-4]
3 [2-4]
0.734
Satisfaction in residence
Median [IQR]
Median [IQR]
[0-6]
5 [3-5]
5 [4-5]
0.314
Social loneliness
Median [IQR]
Median [IQR]
Number of relatives at home
2 [2-3]
3 [2-4]
0.012
Satisfaction in relationships with relatives (0-6)
4 [1.75-5]
5 [4-5]
<0.001
A significant difference between the percentages was measured by Fisher’s exact test. IQR is the interquartile range. The significant difference between medians was measured by the Mann–Whitney test. Significance . Significance . Significance with the Bonferroni correction 0.017 for COVID-19 infection and covariates. Significance with the Bonferroni correction 0.005 for social media use. Significance with the Bonferroni correction 0.006 for healthcare services. Significance with the Bonferroni correction 0.025 for social loneliness. Abbreviations: BMS: burning mouth syndrome; HC: healthy controls; BMI: body mass index.
