Fig. 1

suPAR serum levels (a) and CRP plasma levels (b) in vertebral osteomyelitis (dark gray bars) and control patients (light gray bars). Pre-OP, before surgery; post-OP, after surgery. The absolute suPAR concentration (ng/mL) and CRP concentration (mg/L) are indicated on the Y-axis. Box-and-whiskers plot; data points, open circles; maximum, endpoint of upper whisker; minimum, endpoint of lower whisker; third quartile (75th percentile), upper edge of the box; first quartile (25th percentile), lower edge of the box; median (50th percentile), line inside the box; mean, black diamond; data points beyond the whiskers, outliers. Results are expressed as mean ± SEM. Significant differences in concentrations are marked as follows: *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01