Table 1 Baseline characteristics of participants separated by the number of tick bites
|  | Total (n = 3503) | Tick bite (n = 2466) | < 5 bites (n = 1319) | 5–10 bites (n = 435) | > 10 bites (n = 347) | Missing (n = 365) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gender | ||||||
 Female | 1892 (54.0%) | 1334 (70.5%) | 739 (56.0%) | 238 (54.7%) | 161 (46.4%) | 196 (53.7%) |
 Male | 1601 (45.7%) | 1125 (70.3%) | 574 (43.5%) | 196 (45.1%) | 186 (53.6%) | 169 (46.3%) |
 Missing | 10 (0.3%) | 7 (70,0%) | 6 (0.5%) | 1 (0.2%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) |
Age | ||||||
 18–34 years | 629 (18.0%) | 443 (70.4%) | 294 (22.3%) | 81 (18.6%) | 31 (8.9%) | 37 (10.1%) |
 35–44 years | 386 (11.0%) | 258 (66.8%) | 160 (12.1%) | 48 (11.0%) | 27 (7.8%) | 23 (6.3%) |
 45–54 years | 859 (24.5%) | 615 (71.6.%) | 335 (25.4%) | 113 (26.0%) | 95 (27.4%) | 72 (19.7%) |
 55–64 years | 944 (26.9%) | 659 (69.8%) | 300 (22.7%) | 116 (26.7%) | 122 (35.2%) | 121 (33.2%) |
  ≥ 65 years | 635 (18.1%) | 454 (71.5%) | 213 (16.1%) | 74 (17.0%) | 71 (20.5%) | 96 (26.3%) |
 Missing | 50 (1.4%) | 37 (74.0%) | 17 (1.3%) | 3 (0.7%) | 1 (0.3%) | 16 (4.4%) |
Profession | ||||||
 Farmer | 1452 (41.5%) | 1068 (73.6%) | 502 (38.1%) | 184 (42.3%) | 177 (51.0%) | 205 (56.2%) |
 Forest worker | 49 (1.4%) | 42 (85.7%) | 15 (1.1%) | 12 (2.8%) | 10 (2.9%) | 5 (1.4%) |
 Horticulturist | 160 (4.6%) | 96 (60.0%) | 57 (4.3%) | 15 (3.4%) | 7 (2.0%) | 17 (4.7%) |
 Other type of outdoor worker | 80 (2.3%) | 53 (66.3%) | 24 (1.8%) | 15 (3.4%) | 10 (2.9%) | 4 (1.1%) |
 Indoor worker | 1350 (38.5%) | 891 (66.0%) | 521 (39.5%) | 135 (31.0%) | 104 (30.0%) | 131 (35.9%) |
 Not reported | 412 (11.8%) | 316 (76.7%) | 200 (15.2%) | 74 (17.0%) | 39 (11.2%) | 3 (0.8%) |
Hours spent outside (summer) | ||||||
  < 1 h | 240 (6.9%) | 136 (56.7%) | 76 (5.8%) | 21 (4.8%) | 16 (4.6%) | 23 (6.3%) |
 1–3 h | 862 (21.6%) | 620 (71.9%) | 371 (28.1%) | 115 (26.4%) | 66 (19.0%) | 68 (18.6%) |
  > 3–6 h | 1159 (33.1%) | 825 (71.2%) | 438 (33.2%) | 143 (32.9%) | 128 (36.9%) | 116 (31.8%) |
  > 6 h | 1242 (35.5%) | 885 (71.3%) | 434 (32.9%) | 156 (35.9%) | 137 (39.5%) | 158 (43.3%) |
Hours spent outside (winter) | ||||||
  < 1 h | 534 (15.2%) | 363 (68.0%) | 217 (16.5%) | 66 (15.2%) | 35 (10.1%) | 45 (12.3%) |
 1–3 h | 1522 (43.4%) | 1068 (70.2%) | 600 (45.5%) | 190 (43.7%) | 146 (42.1%) | 132 (36.2%) |
  > 3–6 h | 841 (24.0%) | 602 (71.6%) | 309 (23.4%) | 106 (24.4%) | 89 (25.6%) | 98 (26.8%) |
  > 6 h | 511 (14.6%) | 364 (71.2%) | 165 (12.5%) | 64 (14.7%) | 65 (18.7%) | 70 (19,2%) |
 Not reported | 95 (2.7%) | 69 (72.6%) | 28 (2.1%) | 9 (2.1%) | 12 (3.5%) | 20 (5.5%) |
Area types | ||||||
 Urban area | 342 (9.8%) | 185 (54.1%) | 120 (9.1%) | 29 (6.7%) | 13 (3.7%) | 23 (6.3%) |
 Environs | 1961 (56.0%) | 1417 (72.3%) | 722 (54.7%) | 274 (63.0%) | 216 (62.2%) | 205 (56.2%) |
 Rural areas | 1121 (32.0%) | 812 (72.4%) | 447 (33.9%) | 127 (29.2%) | 109 (31.4%) | 129 (35.3%) |