Table 5.

Comparison of serum IL-18, MMP-9, hs-CRP, and plasma FIB levels ($\overline{x}\pm \text{SD}$).

Indicator	n	IL-18 (ng/mL)	MMP-9 (ng/mL)	hs-CRP (mg/L)	FIB (g/L)
Mild lesion	31	39.15 ± 10.65	86.48 ± 22.18	5.25 ± 1.43	3.94 ± 1.02
Moderate lesion	40	47.53 ± 12.69∗	93.37 ± 24.63∗	6.59 ± 1.44∗	4.62 ± 1.25∗
Severe lesion	65	57.37 ± 13.56∗,#	116.28 ± 29.53∗,#	7.16 ± 1.53∗,#	5.64 ± 1.38∗,#
F	—	18.970	16.670	17.450	20.790
P	—	<0.001	<0.001	<0.001	<0.001

Note: ^∗compared with mild lesions, p < 0.05; ^#compared with moderate lesions, P < 0.05.