Table 2.

Correlation coefficient between preoperative lipid/apolipoprotein level and TNF-α concentration at consecutive time points perioperatively. Time points 2–4 correspond with aorta declamping, 30 min into body reperfusion (i.e. 30 min after termination of extra-corporal perfusion) and admission to the ICU (approximately 2 h after surgery), respectively. Significant correlations were observed between cholesterol and TNF-α in endotoxemia-positive patients at time points 2 and 3, and ApoCI and TNF-α in endotoxemia-positive patients at time points 2–4

Variables	Time point 2	Time point 3	Time point 4
Endotoxemia positive	n = 63	n = 65	n = 65
Cholesterol	0.434***	0.259*	0.174
Triglycerides	0.133	0.236	0.237
ApoCI	0.305*	0.351**	0.425***
ApoCIII	−0.106	0.062	0.077
Endotoxemia negative	n = 36	n = 35	n = 35
Cholesterol	0.186	0.074	−0.329
Triglycerides	0.214	0.037	−0.153
ApoCI	0.299	0.157	−0.330
ApoCIII	−0.161	−0.060	−0.068

^* p < 0.05, ^** p < 0.01, ^*** p < 0.001 (Spearman correlation test)