Box plot representing the initial (open) and minimum (closed) protein C concentrations (%) over the first 2 weeks after admission to the intensive care unit according to the presence of sepsis or severe sepsis (including septic shock). Thedashed linerepresents the lower limit of normal for protein C activity (70%). * P < 0.05 compared with initial values (Wilcoxon test). † P < 0.05 compared with no sepsis (Mann–Whitney U test with Bonferroni correction). $ P < 0.05 pairwise, compared with no-sepsis or sepsis group (Mann–Whitney U test with Bonferroni correction).