Statistical analysis
Age data were analyzed for normality using Shapiro–Wilk test and were found to be normally distributed so they were presented as mean and standard deviation values and were compared using independent t-test. Categorical and ordinal data were presented as frequency and percentage values. Categorical data were compared using fisher’s exact test. Intergroup comparisons for ordinal data were analyzed utilizing Mann–Whitney U test, while intragroup comparisons were analyzed using Friedman’s test followed by Nemenyi post hoc test. The significance level was set at p ≤ 0.05 within all tests. Statistical analysis was performed with R statistical analysis software version 4.1.3 for Windows [