2.6. Statistical Analysis
Baseline characteristics are reported as descriptive data. The normal distribution was tested for continuous variables with the Shapiro-Wilk normality test. When the data were normal or non-normally distributed, the mean (standard deviation, S.D.) or median (range) were used, respectively. The discrete variables were reported in counts (percentages). Statistical analysis was performed by STATA Version 15.0 (College Station, TX, USA). The student t-test was used to compare the continuous variables in parametric data. The Mann–Whitney U test was used for nonparametric data to compare continuous variables. The categorical data were tested by Pearson’s chi-squared test or Fisher exact test. A 