Fig. 1

Elevated indicators of inflammatory activity, osteoresorption, and autoimmunity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). a Plasma levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), carboxy-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX), and rheumatoid factor (RF) in control subjects (CTRL) and patients with RA, categorized by Disease Activity Score in 28 joints (DAS28) as low/moderate RA (DAS28 2.6–5.1) and severe RA (DAS28 > 5.1). b Plasma CTX levels with regard to disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy in patients with RA. Values are presented as medians (middle lines), with boxes representing IQR, whiskers representing 1.5 times the IQR, and squares or circles representing outliers. Group-to-group comparisons were performed using a nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test, and p values <0.05 are shown. N/A Not applicable