  We compare two order parameters for the deconfinement transition, induced by
thermal and density effects, commonly used in the literature, namely the
thermal and density evolution of the continuum threshold $s_{0}$, within the
frame of the QCD sum rules, and the trace of the Polyakov loop $\Phi$ in the
framework of a nonlocal $SU(2)$ chiral quark model. We include in our
discussion the evolution of the chiral quark condensate, the parameter that
characterizes the chiral symmetry restoration. We found that essentially both
order parameters, $s_{0}$ and $\Phi$, provide the same information for the
deconfinement transition, both for the zero and finite chemical potential
cases. At zero density, the critical temperatures in both cases coincide
exactly and, in the case of finite baryonic chemical potential $\mu$, we find
evidence for the appearance of a quarkyonic phase.
