Fig. 5

a Typical examples of the VAS scores of two patients after disc herniation. b, c IL-6 and miR-223 levels in the serum of patients with lumbar radicular pain at inclusion and 12 months. Paired Students t test, **p < 0.01. d miR-223 at inclusion versus IL-6 at 12 months in the serum of patients with lumbar radicular pain. e miR-223 levels at inclusion in the recovery group versus the persistent pain group defined as reduction in VAS from inclusion to 12 months. Linear regression adjusted for the sex, age and smoking, [beta = −2.97, p = 0.031, 95% CI (−5.67, −0.27)]