Is Occult Obscure Gastrointestinal Bleeding a Definite Indication for Capsule Endoscopy? A Retrospective Analysis of Diagnostic Yield in Patients with Occult versus Overt Bleeding

Table 1

Characteristics of patients with OGIB, per study group.

Characteristic	Occult OGIB	Overt OGIB	𝑃 value
	(𝑛=102)	(𝑛=325)
Sex ratio (male/female)	50/52	198/127	<0.05
Age (years)	65.2±17.3	65.3±15.8	NS
Mean time from the first OGIB episode (months)	2.8±2.7	1.7±2.7	NS
Mean hemoglobin concentration at time of examination (g/dL)	7.8±2.1	8.2±2.7	NS
Plasma ferritin (mg/L)	10.1±8.9	137.8±210	0.0003
Blood transfusion	16 (16%)	110 (34%)	<0.01

Number of patients or mean ± SD values are shown.
NS: not significant.