Fig. 4

Prediction of ICU mortality by osteopontin serum concentrations. a OPN serum levels at admission were unchanged in patients that died during the course of ICU treatment compared to those that survived. b In contrast, OPN serum levels after 3 days of ICU treatment were significantly higher in patients that died during the course of ICU treatment compared to those that survived (p <0.001, U test). Box plot are displayed, where the bold line indicates the median per group, the box represents 50 % of the values, and horizontal lines show minimum and maximum values of the calculated non-outlier values. c ROC) curve analyses comparing the prognostic value of OPN levels at day 3 of ICU treatment for ICU survival (AUC 0.793) with that of the initial SAPS2 – score (AUC 0.776) and day 3 SAPS2 –score (AUC 0.781). d ROC curve analyses comparing the prognostic value of OPN levels at day 3 of ICU treatment for ICU survival (AUC 0.725) with that of WBC (AUC 0.431), CRP (AUC 0.447), bilirubin (AUC 0.631), INR (AUC 0.667) and creatinine (AUC 0.632). e Kaplan-Meier survival curves of ICU revealed that patients with OPN levels below 2148 ng/ml had a decreased ICU mortality as compared to patients with higher OPN serum concentrations. p values are given in the figure. ^*** p <0.001. AUC area under the curve, CRP C-reactive protein, ICU intensive care unit, INR international normalized ratio, OPN osteopontin, ROC receiver operating characteristic, SAPS Simplified Acute Physiology Score, WBC white blood cell count