To avoid the interferential impacts by anesthesia, all the enrolled patients underwent the operation under general anesthesia by the same anesthesia team. With no premedication, intravenous midazolam, propofol, sufentanil, and rocuronium were used for inducing anesthesia. Anesthesia was maintained with sevoflurane, propofol, remifentanil, and dexmedetomidine. The serial blood collection preoperatively and on postoperative days 1, 2, and 3 was conducted from all enrolled participants. Blood samples were stored on ice in heparinized tubes and immediately centrifuged (1500g at 4°C for 15 minutes). The separated plasma samples from cellular material were then stored at −80°C until assayed. CRP concentrations were measured by using human enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit (R&D Systems, Minneapolis, MN, USA). The ELISA was carried out in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions by the same laboratory assistant who was completely blinded to this study.