Serum PLR and LMR in Behçet's disease: Can they show the disease activity?

Application Value of Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratio as a Novel Indicator in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Review Based on Clinical Evidence

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronically progressive autoimmune disease with increasing age-standardized prevalence and incidence of RA worldwide. Its pathological features are persistent synovitis of the joint, accompanied by the release of a large number of inflammatory cytokines and cartilage and bone destruction. RA can lead to progressive joint damage, stiffness and swelling, vascular and bone-related complications, and irreversible disability, which seriously affects patients' life treatment. Early diagnosis and treatment can enhance the quality of life of RA patients. Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), as a common indicator in routine blood tests, has been proposed as an indicator of systemic inflammation in recent years. Its clinical detection is less invasive, economical, rapid and simple, and has been applied to the clinical evaluation of a variety of diseases. Of note, this indicator is important in assessing disease activity in RA, co-diagnosing RA, detecting subclinical complications, and monitoring responses to anti-inflammatory therapy. Therefore, this review summarizes the relationship between PLR and RA and the relevant mechanisms, further advancing the understanding of the clinical value of PLR.

The association between Behçet disease activity and elevated systemic immune-inflammation index: A retrospective observational study in a tertiary care hospital

Background The systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) is a novel marker for predicting the prognosis in patients with various diseases and cancers. We aimed to investigate the relationship between SII and disease activity in patients with Behçet disease (BD). Methods Our retrospective study included 513 patients with BD aged ≥18 years. The patients were classified into an active group (n=355) and an inactive group (n=158). Pearson correlation analysis was performed to elucidate correlations between the SII and other markers. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to determine BD-related risk factors. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were computed to assess cut-offs for the predictive value of the SII and other markers. Results Patients with active BD had a significantly higher SII (p<0.001) than those in the inactive group. ROC analysis revealed that the optimal SII cut-off value to identify BD activity was 526.23, with 70.4% sensitivity and 70.3% specificity. Pearson correlation coefficient (r) demonstrated a significant positive correlation between SII, and the C-reactive protein level (r=0.427, p<0.001), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (r=0.422, p<0.001), platelet- lymphocyte ratio (r=0.711, p<0.001), and neutrophil- lymphocyte ratio (r=0.672, p<0.001). According to binary logistic regression analysis, the SII (odds ratio [OR] 1.003; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.001-1.004; p=0.002) was an independent risk factor for active BD. Conclusion The SII can be considered a novel predictor of BD activity.

Role of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio as potential biomarkers in Behçet's disease: a meta-analysis

AIM

The mean platelet volume (MPV), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have attracted interest as possible indicators of inflammation and disease activity in various diseases. This meta-analysis assessed the association between NLR, MPV, PLR, and Behçet's disease (BD) and their correlation with disease activity and thrombosis.

METHODS

A thorough search of the Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases was performed to identify relevant studies. Studies comparing NLR, MPV, and PLR between patients with BD and healthy controls, as well as studies examining these measures in connection with disease activity and thrombosis in BD satisfied the inclusion criteria. The standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to calculate the effect sizes.

RESULTS

This meta-analysis included 24 articles. The findings revealed no discernible differences in MPV between the BD and control groups (p = 0.992). NLR was substantially higher in the BD group than in the control group (p < 0.001). PLR was higher in the BD group than in the control group (p = 0.030), indicating that BD is associated with a larger PLR. Patients with active and inactive BD did not vary significantly in terms of disease activity according to the MPV. Comparing MPV between patients with BD with and without thrombosis showed no discernible changes. However, individuals with active BD had a considerably higher NLR and PLR than those with inactive BD (p = 0.003 and p = 0.005, respectively). The statistical significance threshold for the association between NLR, PLR, and thrombosis in patients with BD was not met.

CONCLUSION

NLR and PLR can be regarded as general markers of inflammation according to the results of this meta-analysis.

The value of NLR versus MLR in the short-term prognostic assessment of HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure

BACKGROUND

Systemic inflammation is associated with the development and progression of hepatitis B-associated acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF). The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been reported to be a prognostic biomarker in patients with HBV-ACLF. However, the role of the monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) as a prognostic inflammatory biomarker in multiple diseases is rarely mentioned in HBV-ACLF.

METHODS

We included a total of 347 patients with HBV-ACLF who met the definition of the Chinese Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Liver Failure (2018 edition). Among them, 275 cases were included retrospectively, and 72 cases were collected prospectively. Clinical characteristics and laboratory examination data were collected from medical records within 24 h after diagnosis to calculate MLR and NLR levels, and lymphocyte subpopulation counts were collected in prospectively included patients.

RESULTS

Of the 347 patients with HBV-ACLF, 128 patients in the non-surviving group had a mean age of 48.87 ± 12.89 years; 219 patients in the survival group had a mean age of 44.80 ± 11.80 years and a combined 90-day mortality rate of 36.9%. The median MLR was higher in the non-survivors than in the survivors (0.690 vs 0.497, P < 0.001). MLR values were significantly associated with 90-day mortality in HBV-ACLF (OR 6.738; 95% CI 3.188-14.240, P < 0.001). The AUC for the predictive power of the combined MLR and NLR analysis for HBV-ACLF was 0.694, and the calculated MLR threshold was 4.495. In addition, in the analysis of peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets in HBV-ACLF, a significant decrease in the number of circulating lymphocytes was found in HBV-ACLF patients in the non-surviving group (P < 0.001), with a predominant decrease in the number of CD8 + T cells and no significant difference in the number of CD4 + T cells, B cells or NK cells.

CONCLUSION

Increased MLR values are associated with 90-day mortality in patients with HBV-ACLF, and the MLR may serve as a potential prognostic indicator for patients with HBV-ACLF. Decreased CD8 + T-cell counts may be associated with poor survival in patients with HBV-ACLF.

Finding the Needle in the Haystack: Serological and Urinary Biomarkers in Behçet's Disease: A Systematic Review

Urinary and serological markers play an essential role in the diagnostic process of autoimmune diseases. However, to date, specific and reliable biomarkers for diagnosing Behçet's disease (BD) are still lacking, negatively affecting the management of these patients. To analyze the currently available literature on serological and urinary BD biomarkers investigated in the last 25 years, we performed a systematic literature review using the Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcomes (PICO) strategy. One hundred eleven studies met the eligibility criteria (6301 BD patients, 5163 controls). Most of them were retrospective, while five (5%) were prospective. One hundred ten studies (99%) investigated serological biomarkers and only two (2%) focused on urinary biomarkers. One hundred three studies (93%) explored the diagnostic potential of the biomolecules, whereas sixty-two (56%) tested their effect on disease activity monitoring. Most articles reported an increase in inflammatory markers and pro-oxidant molecules, with a decrease in antioxidants. Promising results have been shown by the omics sciences, offering a more holistic approach. Despite the vast number of investigated markers, existing evidence indicates a persistent gap in BD diagnostic/prognostic indices. While new steps have been taken in the direction of pathogenesis and disease monitoring, international efforts for the search of a diagnostic marker for BD are still needed.

Platelet lymphocyte ratio, lymphocyte monocyte ratio, mean platelet volume, and neutrophil lymphocyte ratio in Behcet’s disease and their relation to disease activity

Background

Behcet’s disease (BD) does not have specific laboratory finding or pathological physical examination sign, and only few studies have investigated Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelets to lymphocytes ratio (PLR), lymphocytes to monocytes ratio (LMR), or mean platelet volume (MPV) values in patients with BD. We conducted this study to investigate the relationship between these indices and Behcet’s disease (BD) and to determine their relation to BD disease activity.

Results

This study is a case-control study that included 36 Behcet’s disease patients and 36 healthy controls. BD patients showed significant increase in the mean of NLR and PLR in comparison to control (P = 0.008 and 0.011) respectively, and highly significant decrease in LMR and MPV levels in BD patients in comparison to control (P < 0.001 and < 0.001) respectively. Also, we found that NLR, PLR, and LMR were significantly related to BD activity, and there were significant associations between the studied hematological parameters with some of muco-cutaneous, articular, gastrointestinal, eye, and nervous system manifestations in BD patients.

Conclusion

The blood indices NLR, PLR, LMR, and MPV are potential inflammatory markers that can be used to evaluate inflammatory status and disease activity in patients with BD. NLR and PLR showed positive relation being higher in active disease and also higher in highly active disease than in low disease activity. Also, LMR was significantly decreased in Behcet’s disease patients in relation to disease activity. Furthermore, NLR and PLR levels were significantly more associated with muco-cutaneous and nervous system involvement while, LMR levels were significantly associated with muco-cutaneous, articular, gastrointestinal and eye manifestations and MPV levels were associated with articular manifestations being significantly related to disease activity. These easily evaluated markers could help in the management of this disease with multisystem affection that are sometimes serious and potentially life threatening.

New markers to predict the response to omalizumab in chronic spontaneous urticaria

Omalizumab has high treatment efficacy in patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) who do not respond to high doses of antihistamines. Systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and systemic inflammation response index (SIRI) were described as novel inflammatory and prognostic biomarkers. The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of SII and SIRI in patients with CSU who receive omalizumab therapy. A total of 124 patients with severe urticaria who had an Urticaria Activity Score over 7 days (UAS-7) ≥28 were included in the study. UAS-7, C-reactive protein (CRP), SII, and SIRI values ​​were recorded before and after omalizumab treatment. Patients with UAS-7 ≤ 6 at week 12 and/or week 24 of omalizumab treatment were considered responders. Three months after omalizumab treatment, significant decreases were observed in SII, SIRI, CRP, and UAS-7 compared to pre-treatment values ​​(p:0.003, p < 0.001, p:0.006, and p < 0.001, respectively). At the third and sixth months of treatment, baseline SII and SIRI levels of the omalizumab responder group were significantly higher than the non-responder group (p < 0.001). However, there was no difference in baseline CRP and UAS-7 levels between responders and non-responders (p˃0.05). After adjusting for confounding factors, only pre-treatment SII (OR: 1.002, 95% CI: 1.000-1.004, p: 0.036) and SIRI (OR: 4.334, 95% CI: 1.751-10.726, p:0.002) values were independently associated with response to omalizumab at 3 months in multivariate regression analysis. SII and SIRI could be effectively used to predict the response to omalizumab therapy. More comprehensive studies are needed to validate and elaborate on this relationship.

Diagnostic Performance of Lower Extremity Venous Wall Thickness and Laboratory Findings in the Diagnosis of the Behçet Disease

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE

Behçet disease (BD) is not a single unique entity but a syndrome with different clinical phenotypes that can involve arterial and venous vessels of all sizes. To date, there has been no specific test or serum marker to measure and determine the severity of BD, and diagnosis remains based on clinical findings. This study aimed to assess lower extremity venous wall thickness (VWT) measured by ultrasound and laboratory findings and diagnostic performance in patients with BD.

METHODS

A total of 106 participants were recruited from the rheumatology department in this single-center, case-control study. Participants meeting the eligibility criteria were divided into healthy controls (n = 52) and BD (n = 54). The VWT values of the common femoral vein, great saphenous vein, and popliteal vein were measured using ultrasonography. Laboratory data were obtained from the electronic registration database. Venous wall thicknesses and laboratory findings in patients with BD and healthy subjects were compared.

RESULTS

Venous wall thickness of the lower extremity veins was higher in the BD group and higher in those with a history of deep vein thrombosis than in those without. The mean leukocyte, monocyte, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein, plateletcrit (PCT), red cell distribution width (RDW), mean platelet volume (MPV) values, and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) were higher in BD patients than in the control group. There was a correlation among increased VWT, ESR, PCT, MPV, RDW, and MLR.

CONCLUSIONS

C-reactive protein, ESR, MPV, PCT, MLR, RDW, and VWT can be used to assist in the diagnosis of BD.

High levels of platelettolymphocyte ratio may predict reduced risk of end stage of renal disease in Chinese patients with MPOANCA associated vasculitis

OBJECTIVES

Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) has recently been investigated as a new inflammatory marker in many inflammatory diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus and immunoglobulin A vasculitis. However, there were very few reports regarding the clinical role of PLR in patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis. This study was thus undertaken to investigate the relationship between inflammatory response and disease activity in Chinese patients with myeloperoxidase-anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (MPO-ANCA) associated vasculitis. Furthermore, we evaluated whether PLR predicts the progression of end stage of renal disease (ESRD) and all-cause mortality.

METHODS

The clinical, laboratory and pathological data, and the outcomes of MPO-ANCA associated vasculitis patients were collected. The Spearman correlation coefficient was computed to examine the association between 2 continuous variables. Cox regression analysis was used to estimate the association between PLR and ESRD or all-cause mortality.

RESULTS

A total of 190 consecutive patients with MPO-ANCA associated vasculitis were included in this study. Baseline PLR was positively correlated with CRP (r=0.333, P<0.001) and ESR (r=0.218, P=0.003). PLR had no obvious correlation with Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS). Patients having PLR≥330 exhibited better cumulative renal survival rates than those having PLR<330 (P=0.017). However, there was no significant difference in the cumulative patient survival rates between patients with PLR≥330 and those with PLR<330 at diagnosis (P>0.05). In multivariate analysis, PLR is associated with the decreased risk of ESRD (P=0.038, HR=0.518, 95% CI 0.278 to 0.963). We did not find an association between PLR with all-cause mortality using multivariate analysis (HR=1.081, 95% CI 0.591 to 1.976, P=0.801).

CONCLUSIONS

PLR is positively correlated with CRP and ESR. Furthermore, PLR may independently predict the risk of ESRD.

Mean platelet volume as a predictor in the differentiation of Behçet's disease from recurrent aphthous stomatitis - A single centre, prospective, case-control study

INTRODUCTION

Recurrent oral ulcers (ROUs) are the most common disorder of the oral cavity in the community. The most challenging issue for the clinician to deal with in the diagnosis is to distinguish whether ROUs are associated with primarily Behçet's disease (BD). We aimed to investigate whether hemogram parameters contribute to reinforce BD suspicion in the differential diagnosis of recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) and BD.

METHODS

A total of 260 participants were recruited from the dermatology department in this single-centre, prospective, case-control study. Participants meeting eligibility criteria were divided into three groups as healthy control (n = 90), RAS (n = 97) and mucocutaneous BD (n = 73). The mean platelet volume (MPV), red cell distribution width (RDW), haemoglobin, neutrophils, monocyte, lymphocytes and platelet counts were evaluated with the complete blood count. Furthermore, the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte/lymphocyte ratio and platelet/lymphocyte ratio were calculated. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein were recorded. The contribution of hemogram parameters to the differentiation of BD from RAS was analysed.

RESULTS

The healthy control, RAS and BD groups were matched in terms of mean age (29.3 ± 5.8, 28.7 ± 5.6 and 29.9 ± 6.8 years; respectively) and sex distribution (women/men rate: 1.4, 1.6 and 1.7; respectively). ESR, neutrophil count and NLR were significantly higher in BD patients. (P = .032, P = .010, P = .019; respectively). MPV is significantly decreased in BD patients than in healthy control and RAS patients (P < .001). Decreased MPV (≤10 fL) and increased RDW (≥13.0%) were useful in predicting BD in patients evaluated with complaints of ROUs (OR = 9.98, 95% CI: [4.65-21.42], P < .001 and OR = 2.23, 95% CI: [1.14-3.36], P = .019, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Decreased MPV may be predictive for BD in selected patients with ROUs. We consider that more attention is required in terms of BD especially if MPV ≤10.0 fL.

Risk factors for renal involvement in Henoch-Schönlein purpura

OBJECTIVE

Henoch-Schönlein purpura is a systemic vasculitis that mainly occurs in children. Renal impairment is a major complication of Henoch-Schönlein purpura, but there is no established predictive marker for renal involvement. Thus, in this study, we investigated the risk factors for renal involvement in children with Henoch-Schönlein purpura.

METHOD

The medical records of children newly diagnosed as having Henoch-Schönlein purpura between 2005 and 2020 were reviewed retrospectively. Selected laboratory data were recorded before treatment initiation. The date and the age at diagnosis; sex; and the presence of arthralgia, gastrointestinal and renal involvement were obtained retrospectively.

RESULTS

This study included a total of 186 patients with Henoch-Schönlein purpura. Among them, 36.0% had renal involvement; 28.4% had only microscopic hematuria, 53.7% had non-nephrotic range proteinuria, and 17.9% had nephrotic-range proteinuria during follow-up. The mean age was higher (p = 0.016) and female sex was predominant (p = 0.001) in patients with renal involvement than in those without renal involvement. Blood neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (p = 0.002) and platelet/lymphocyte ratio (p = 0.002) were significantly higher than that of the patients without renal involvement. No statistically significant differences were observed in the hemoglobin concentration, platelet count, presence of arthralgia, and gastrointestinal involvement between patients with and without renal involvement. Logistic regression analysis revealed female sex (odd ratio = 3.213) and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (odd ratio = 1.329) as risk factors for renal involvement.

CONCLUSIONS

Female sex and high neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio were risk factors for renal involvement in Henoch-Schönlein purpura.

Evaluation of diagnostic performance of haematological parameters in Behçet's disease

OBJECTIVE

Behçet's Disease (BD) is a polygenic and chronic autoinflammatory multisystemic vasculitis disease characterised by mucocutaneous, musculoskeletal, neurological, gastrointestinal and ophthalmologic lesions. There has been no specific test or serum marker to measure and determine the diagnosis and severity of BD.

PURPOSE

The study aimed to investigate the diagnostic performance of haematological parameters as MLR (monocyte to lymphocyte ratio), NLR (neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio), PLR (platelet to lymphocyte ratio), MPV (mean platelet volume), MPVPR (mean platelet volume to platelet ratio), LMR (lymphocyte to monocyte ratio), LPM (lymphocyte and platelet multiplication), WLP (lymphocyte and leukocyte multiplication), RDW (red blood cell distribution width) and PCT (plateletcrit) in BD and compare these with disease activity and clinical findings.

METHODS

A total of 266 participants (49 healthy control and 217 BD patients) were recruited from the rheumatology department in a single-centre as a case-control study. The laboratory data were obtained from the electronic registration database. BD Activity scores (BDCAF/Behcet's Disease Current Activity Form) were calculated. Laboratory findings of BD patients and healthy controls were compared and evaluated.

RESULTS

RDW, Platelet, PCT, NLR and PLR values were significantly higher in patient group than in the healthy controls. However, haemoglobin, MPVPR and LMR were significantly lower in the patient group which compared with the healthy controls. LPM in BD with genital ulcers, WLP in BD with genital ulcers and arthritis, MPR in BD with uveitis, RDW in BD with thrombosis and neuro-Behçet's disease (NBD), PLR in NBD were observed to be higher. However, LMR in NBD and MPV in BD with thrombosis were lower than those without. There was a positive correlation between BDCAF score and RDW, and NLR.

CONCLUSION

Haemoglobin, RDW, Platelet, PCT, NLR, LMR, PLR and MPVPR were statistically significant predictors for BD. RDW, PCT and NLR are the most valuable predictors for BD.

Predictive value of the monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio in the diagnosis of prostate cancer

It has been reported that inflammation and immune system are related to prostate cancer. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), as well as the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), have already been proposed as new indices to help diagnose prostate cancer (PCa). However, the monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) with regard to PCa has rarely been mentioned.To investigate the capability of the MLR to predict PCa.Patients who were pathologically diagnosed with PCa in our hospital and healthy control subjects who conformed to the inclusion criteria were enrolled. Patient data were recorded, including age, complete blood counts, blood biochemistry, and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. The differences in these data between the groups were analyzed and the diagnostic value of the MLR was compared with PSA.Our study included a total of 100 patients with PCa and 103 healthy control subjects. Patients with PCa presented with a significantly higher NLR, MLR, and PLR compared to control subjects. However, the hemoglobin and lymphocyte levels were lower (P < .05) in PCa patients. The area under the curve (AUC) of PSA and ratio of free/total serum prostate-specific antigen were 0.899 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.857-0.942) and 0.872 (95% CI: 0.818-0.926), respectively, while the AUC of the MLR was 0.852 (95% CI: 0.798-0.906), which was higher than that of the NLR, PLR, and any other blood parameters. Additionally, the optimal cut-off value of the MLR for PCa was 0.264, with a specificity of 87.4% and a sensitivity of 72.0%. An evaluation of the diagnostic value of MLR + PSA gave an AUC of 0.936 (95% CI: 0.902-0.970). However, the AUC of MLR + PSA + f/tPSA was 0.996 (95% CI: 0.991-1.000). The diagnostic value of MLR + NLR + PSA gave an AUC of 0.945 (95% CI: 0.913-0.977), and the specificity is 0.971.PSA remains the most important diagnostic indicator. MLR combined with PSA and f/tPSA has the higher predictive value than PSA. It suggests that MLR may be another good predictive indicator of PCa. It can help reduce the clinical false positive rate.

Monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio is associated with 28-day mortality in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome: a retrospective study

Background

Systemic inflammation relates to the initiation and progression of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and red blood cell distribution width (RDW)/albumin ratio have been reported to be predictive prognostic biomarkers in ARDS patients. However, the role of monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) as a prognostic inflammatory biomarker in a variety of diseases is rarely mentioned in ARDS. In this study, we explored the relationship between MLR and disease severity in ARDS patients and compared it with other indicators associated with 28-day mortality in patients with ARDS.

Methods

We retrospectively included 268 patients who fulfilled the Berlin definition of ARDS and were admitted to a single institute from 2016 to 2020. Clinical characteristics and experimental test data were collected from medical records within 24 h after the ARDS diagnosis. MLR, NLR, and RDW/albumin ratio levels were calculated. The primary clinical outcome was 28-day mortality. Logistic regression analysis was used to illustrate the relationship between indicators and 28-day mortality. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the area under the curve (AUC), and propensity score matching (PSM) was employed to validate our findings.

Results

The median MLR values were higher for non-survivors than for survivors before and after matching (P<0.001, P=0.001, respectively). MLR values were significantly associated with 28-day mortality (OR 2.956; 95% CI 1.873–4.665; P<0.001). MLR and NLR indicators were combined for predictive efficacy analysis, and its AUC reached 0.750. There was a significant increase in 28-day mortality depending on the increasing MLR level: low MLR group 38 (20.4%), high MLR group 47 (57.3%) (P<0.001).

Conclusions

Higher MLR values were associated with 28-day mortality in patients with ARDS. Further investigation is required to verify this relationship with prospectively collected data.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40560-021-00564-6.

Correlation of clinical signs and symptoms of Behçet's disease with platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR)

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic disorder that involves multiple organs and is pathologically considered as a form of vasculitis. The current study aims to assess the metric properties of platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in assessing BD disease activity. Three-hundred-nineteen patients with BD were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Demographic and epidemiological data, including IBDDAM, time since the onset, and medication and manifestation history were recorded. Complete blood counts (CBC), NLR, and PLR were assessed by analyzing blood samples. On the last visit, patients were assessed for active manifestations of disease. IBDDAM and ocular IBDAAM scores were calculated for activity of disease in each patient. Both PLR and NLR were higher in patients with active BD (Mann-Whitney U test, p-value < 0.05). Patients with active ocular manifestation had significantly higher NLR and PLR (Mann-Whitney U test, p-value < 0.05). These ratios, however, were not associated with other active BD manifestations. A value of NLR > 2.58 had 46% sensitivity and 85% specificity for the diagnosis of active ocular manifestations (AUC: 0.690). NLR had a significant, though, weak positive correlation with IBDDAM (Spearman's rho = 0.162; p-value < 0.05) and ocular IBDDAM (Spearman's rho = 0.159; p-value < 0.05). Active Behçet's presented with higher NLR and PLR ratios; however, there was only a modest correlation between NLR and BD activity (IBDDAM score). Also, NLR and PLR have significant relationship with ocular features of BD patients.

Severe retinopathy of prematurity is associated with early post-natal low platelet count

Pathophysiology of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) still presents a gap. Lately blood tests parameters of premature infants have been measured at different times of ROP, attempting to detect correlations with ROP development and progression. So far, very early post-natal biomarkers, predictive of ROP outcome, have not been detected. Our purpose is to evaluate, in the earliest post birth blood sample, the correlation between routinely dosed blood parameters and ROP outcome. 563 preterm babies, screened according to ROP guidelines, were included and classified in conformity with ET-ROP study in "Group 1" (ROP needing treatment), "Group 2" (ROP spontaneously regressed) and "noROP" group (never developed ROP). The earliest (within an hour after delivery) blood test parameters routinely dosed in each preterm infant were collected. Platelet count was decreased in Group 1 versus noROP group (p = 0.0416) and in Group 2 versus noROP group (p = 0.1093). The difference of thrombocytopenic infants among groups was statistically significant (p = 0.0071). CRP was higher in noROP versus all ROPs (p = 0.0331). First post-natal blood sample revealed a significant thrombocytopenia in ROP needing treatment, suggesting a role of platelets in the pathophysiology and progression of ROP, possibly considering it as a predictive parameter of ROP evolution.

High Monocyte-To-Lymphocyte Ratio Is Associated With Stroke-Associated Pneumonia

Purpose: Stroke-associated pneumonia (SAP), a common complication in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients, is associated with poor prognosis after AIS. Inflammation plays an important role in the development of SAP. In this study, we aimed to explore the association between the monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) and SAP in AIS patients.

Methods: We continuously enrolled 972 AIS patients. SAP was diagnosed by two trained neurologists and confirmed by radiography, meeting the modified Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria. MLR values were measured for all participants, and all patients were evenly classified into three tertiles according to the MLR levels. We used the values that Youden's index max points corresponded to represent the optimal cutoffs, which represented the balance in sensitivity and specificity.

Results: 104 (10.7%) patients were diagnosed with SAP. SAP patients showed a significant increased (P < 0.001) MLR when compared with non-SAP. The optimal cutoff points of MLR were (T1) <0.2513, (T2) 0.2513–0.3843, and (T3) > 0.3843. The incidence of SAP was significantly higher in the third MLR tertile than the first and second MLR tertiles (21.7 vs. 4 vs. 6.5%, respectively, P < 0.001). After adjusting for confounding and risk factors, multivariate regression analysis showed that the third MLR tertile was an independent variable predicting the occurrence of SAP (odds ratio = 3.503, 95%CI = 1.066–11.515, P = 0.039).

Conclusions: Our study showed that higher MLR was significantly associated with SAP in AIS patients. MLR is beneficial for clinicians to recognize patients with a high risk of SAP at an early stage and is an effective way to improve clinical care of SAP patients. Higher MLR could be a helpful and valid biomarker for predicting SAP in clinical practice.

Variation of red blood cell parameters in Behcet's disease: association with disease severity and vascular involvement

INTRODUCTION/OBJECTIVES

Behcet's disease (BD) is a systemic and chronic inflammatory vasculitis with unknown etiology. Diagnosis is determined by evaluating several clinical criteria, but the lack of specific laboratory diagnostic markers makes the diagnosis of BD more difficult. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the changes in hematological parameters in BD patients to investigate their relationship with BD clinical features.

METHOD

A total of 48 BD patients and 96 healthy controls were included in this study. The severity of each BD patient was associated to a severity score according to the entire spectrum of disease manifestations. Several laboratory tests were assessed, and the difference in their results between BD patients and healthy controls was evaluated. Correlation analysis was performed to reveal the interaction of these parameters.

RESULTS

C-reactive protein (CRP), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), neutrophil count, platelet count, and plateletcrit significantly increased in BD patients compared with healthy controls (P < 0.05). CRP was higher in patients with skin lesions, MCH and MCHC were lower in patients with vascular involvement, and the neutrophil count was higher in patients with skin lesions and genital ulcers. In addition, higher CRP and lower MCH and MCHC were associated with a severe condition. Besides, MCH and MCHC were negatively correlated with the platelet count, plateletcrit, and neutrophil count.

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed that MCH and MCHC are valuable parameters for BD. Their levels help assess the disease severity and indicate the vascular involvement in BD. Key Points • This is the first study reporting MCH and MCHC as important biomarkers in BD. • BD patients with vascular involvement and thrombosis potential have lower levels of MCH and MCHC. • MCH and MCHC are negatively correlated with platelet count, plateletcrit, and neutrophil count. • Lower MCH and MCHC are associated with a severe condition.

Risk factors of disease activity in patients with Behçet's syndrome

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the clinical characteristics and laboratory data in Behçet's syndrome (BS) patients in China and analyze the risk factors of disease activity.

METHOD

A retrospective analysis method was used and the demographic data and laboratory results were collected from 174 BS patients. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to analyze the demographic data and laboratory indexes whether that are risk factors or not of disease activity.

RESULTS

The most common clinical manifestations of BS patients enrolled were mouth ulceration (48.85%), followed by erythema nodosum (20.69%), and eye involvement (13.75%), while the least common was headache (0%). Most active BS patients (96.55%) used 2 or ≥ 3 immunosuppressants to control disease, while most inactive patients (75%) used 0 or 1 immunosuppressant. The associated risk factors of disease activity consisted of disease duration, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), white blood cells, red blood cells, hemoglobin, platelets, fibrin degradation products, IgG, IgM, complement 3, complement 4, C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), albumin, albumin-to-globulin ratio (AGR), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (P < 0.05 or P = 0.00). Disease duration (≤ 60 months) (OR 8.49, 95% CI 2.09-34.49, P = 0.003), NLR (≥ 2) (OR 8.68, 95% CI 2.12-35.49, P = 0.003), CRP (≥ 10 mg/L) (OR 41.12, 95% CI 8.43-200.70, P = 0.000), ESR (≥ 20 mm/H) (OR 9.60, 95% CI 2.41-38.18, P = 0.001), and AGR (< 1.5) (OR 12.42, 95% CI 2.92-52.80, P = 0.001) were the independent risk factors of disease activity in BS patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Attention should be paid to the risk factors of disease activity and the medicine should be adjusted correspondingly. Key Points • The current diagnosis and efficacy evaluation of Behçet's syndrome (BS) mainly relied on clinical symptoms, while there are no specific laboratory biomarkers for reference. • In this study, we found that disease duration (≤ 60 months), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (≥ 2), C-reactive protein (≥ 10 mg/L), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (≥ 20 mm/H), and albumin-to-globulin ratio (< 1.5) were the independent risk factors of disease activity in BS patients. • In the ROC curve analysis, we found that erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio could predict whether BS patients were active.

Can decreased monocyte to HDL-cholesterol ratio be a marker indicating the anti-inflammatory effect of the colchicine in Behçet's disease? A preliminary study

Behçet's disease (BD) is an auto-inflammatory disease characterized by systemic vasculitis. Monocyte to HDL-cholesterol ratio (MHR), monocyte to lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) are used as inflammatory markers in many disorders. Colchicine decreases inflammation by suppressing the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. This study aims to examine the effects of colchicine treatment on MHR, MLR, and NLR levels of the patients with BD. In this study, 80 patients, who were with mild/moderate/severe BD based on the Krause's Clinical Severity Scoring for BD and received colchicine treatment for at least 3 months, were evaluated retrospectively. The results of MHR, MLR, NLR, and other hematological parameters were assessed in three groups as follows: precolchicine treatment (Group 1), at the end of the 1st month of the treatment (Group 2), and at the end of the 3rd month of the treatment (Group 3). A total of 80 patients involving 39 (48.75%) females and 41 (51.25%) males, who were treated with colchicine due to the diagnosis of BD, were examined in this study. The mean age of the patients was 36.85 ± 10.659 (18-59) years. The findings showed that there was a statistically significant reduction in MHR, MLR, and NLR levels of postcolchicine treatment (P = .0004, P = .0007, and P = .0003, respectively). MHR level was 0.015 ± 0.005 in Group 1, 0.013 ± 0.004 in Group 2, 0.011 ± 0.004 in Group 3, while MLR level was 0.346 ± 0.131 in Group 1, 0.277 ± 0.098 in Group 2, 0.229 ± 0.08 in Group 3, and NLR level was 2.528 ± 0.999 in Group 1, 2.001 ± 0.672 in Group 2, 1.704 ± 0.619 in Group 3. A significant association was found between the MHR value of pretreatment and the clinical severity of BD (P = .04). The findings obtained in this study suggest that we can determine the anti-inflammatory impact of colchicine in BD using MHR, MLR, and NLR markers, and MHR can also be a potential index for assessing the disease activity of BD.

Use of prognostic nutritional index in the evaluation of disease activity in patients with Behçet's disease

OBJECTIVE

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic, multisystem disorder that can cause severe morbidity and mortality. Monitoring tools that measure disease activity are required for effective management of BD. We aimed to investigate the association of prognostic nutritional index (PNI) with disease activity in BD.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, we enrolled 88 adult patients with BD and 51 healthy controls. The patients were divided into patients with active and inactive BD according to their disease activities. PNI was calculated using the following formula: 10×serum albumin (g/dL)+0.005×peripheral lymphocyte count (per mm3). To evaluate BD activity, the Behçet Disease Current Activity Form was used. The relations of BD activity with PNI, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and C-reactive protein were investigated. A receiver operator characteristic curve analysis was used to define the optimum cutoff value of PNI for active BD.

RESULTS

A total of 48 patients were classified as having active BD and 40 as having inactive BD. Patients with active BD had lower mean PNI than patients with inactive BD and healthy controls (51.8±4.2, 57.4±2.9, and 56.6±3.6, respectively; p<0.001). In multivariate analysis, PNI was the only independent predictor of BD activity (odds ratio, -0.687; 95% confidence interval 0.548-0.861; p=0.001). The optimum cutoff of PNI for active BD was 55.35 with 79.2% sensitivity and 77.75% specificity.

CONCLUSION

PNI was significantly associated with BD activity. PNI may be a useful tool for the assessment of disease activity in BD.

An investigation of thiol/disulfide homeostasis in patients with Behçet's disease

INTRODUCTION

Behçet's disease (BD) is a relapsing systemic inflammatory disorder. The diagnosis of BD is primarily based on clinical findings. Current biomarkers are not yet sufficient to diagnose and cannot anticipate the course of the disease and response to treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the thiol-disulfide balance and disease activity and organ involvement in BD.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A hundred fifty patients with BD and 100 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were included in the study. Disease activity was assessed with the BD Current Activity form score. Serum levels of native thiol (NT), total thiol (TT), and disulfide were measured and the disulfide/native thiol, disulfide/total thiol and native thiol/total thiol levels were calculated for the patient and control groups.

RESULTS

Native thiol, total thiol, native thiol/total thiol values of the BD patients were significantly lower than those of the control group. The disulfide/native thiol, disulfide/total thiol values of BD patients were higher compared to the control group and the disulfide value of the BD group was slightly higher compared to the control group. No correlation was determined between thiol levels and disease activity and organ involvement in BD.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with Behcet's disease, the thiol-disulfide homeostasis balance shifted towards disulfide formation due to thiol oxidation. It may be used as a novel marker in BD because it is easy, practical, fully automated and relatively inexpensive.

Value of hematological indices versus VEGF as biomarkers of activity in Behçet's disease

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to investigate the value of several hematological indices, neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), red blood cell distribution width (RDW), and mean platelet volume (MPV), versus vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as biomarkers of activity in Behçet's disease (BD).

METHODS

This study included 96 adult BD patients recruited from the Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic, Kasr Al-Ainy Hospital, Cairo University, and 60 healthy subjects as controls. Assessment of BD activity was done using the Behçet's Disease Current Activity Form (BDCAF). The CBC was measured by COULTER LH 750 assay analyzer with special consideration to the NLR, PLR, MPV, and RDW. Serum VEGF level was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique.

RESULTS

The NLR, RDW, and PLR were significantly higher in BD patients when compared with healthy controls (p = 0.011, < 0.001, < 0.001, respectively), while there was no statistical difference in MPV or VEGF between patients and controls (p = 0.82, 0.46). NLR and PLR were significantly higher in BD patients with vascular activity (p = 0.03, 0.01). RDW was significantly higher, while MPV was significantly lower in patients with vascular manifestations (p = 0.04, 0.004). NLR and PLR were the most valuable predictors of vascular activity (p = 0.033, 0.018). PLR was more powerful as a predictor of vascular activity, but it had a lower specificity than NLR.

CONCLUSION

The NLR, PLR, and RDW are significantly higher in BD patients, suggesting their value as promising inflammatory biomarkers in BD. NLR and PLR are the most valuable predictors of vascular activity, while RDW and MPV were not valuable predictors of BD activity, rather implicated in the ongoing vascular inflammatory process in BD. The VEGF was neither a surrogate biomarker of BD activity nor reflecting the ongoing inflammatory process in BD.

Biomarkers in Vasculitides of the Nervous System

Besides being affected by the rare and severe primary angiitis of the central nervous system (PACNS) the nervous system is also affected by primary systemic vasculitides (PSV). In contrast to PACNS, PSV affect not only the central but also the peripheral nervous system, resulting in a large array of potential symptoms. Given the high burden of disease, difficulties in distinguishing between differential diagnoses, and incomplete pathophysiological insights, there is an urgent need for additional precise diagnostic tools to enable an earlier diagnosis and initiation of effective treatments. Methods available to date, such as inflammatory markers, antibodies, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis, imaging, and biopsy, turn out to be insufficient to meet all current challenges. We highlight the use of biomarkers as an approach to extend current knowledge and, ultimately, improve patient management. Biomarkers are considered to be useful for disease diagnosis and monitoring, for predicting response to treatment, and for prognosis in clinical practice, as well as for establishing outcome parameters in clinical trials. In this article, we review the recent literature on biomarkers which have been applied in the context of different types of nervous system vasculitides including PACNS, giant-cell arteritis, Takayasu's arteritis, polyarteritis nodosa, ANCA (anti-neutrophil cytoplasm antibody)-associated vasculitides, cryoglobulinemic vasculitis, IgA vasculitis, and Behçet's disease. Overall, the majority of biomarkers is not specific for vasculitides of the nervous system.

The Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratio as an Inflammatory Marker in Rheumatic Diseases

The platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) has emerged as an informative marker revealing shifts in platelet and lymphocyte counts due to acute inflammatory and prothrombotic states. PLR has been extensively examined in neoplastic diseases accompanied by immune suppression and thrombosis, which can be predicted by combined blood cell counts and their ratios. Several large observational studies have demonstrated the value of shifts in PLR in evaluating the severity of systemic inflammation and predicting infections and other comorbidities, in inflammatory rheumatic diseases. The value of PLR as an inflammatory marker increases when its fluctuations are interpreted along with other complementary hematologic indices, particularly the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), which provides additional information about the disease activity, presence of neutrophilic inflammation, infectious complications, and severe organ damage in systemic lupus erythematosus. PLR and NLR have high predictive value in rheumatic diseases with predominantly neutrophilic inflammation (e.g., Behçet disease and familial Mediterranean fever). High PLR, along with elevated platelet count, is potentially useful in diagnosing some systemic vasculitides, particularly giant-cell arteritis. A few longitudinal studies on rheumatic diseases have demonstrated a decrease in PLR in response to anti-inflammatory therapies. The main limitations of PLR studies are preanalytical faults, inadequate standardization of laboratory measurements, and inappropriate subject selection. Nonetheless, accumulating evidence suggests that PLR can provide valuable information to clinicians who encounter multisystem manifestations of rheumatic diseases, which are reflected in shifts in platelet, lymphocyte, neutrophil, or monocyte counts. Interpretation of PLR combined with complementary hematologic indices is advisable to more accurately diagnose inflammatory rheumatic diseases and predict related comorbidities.

Behçet's disease: An immunogenetic perspective

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic and rare multisystemic disorder defined by autoimmunity and inflammatory characteristics, manifested by ocular lesions, recurrent genital and oral ulcers, skin symptoms and arthritis as well as neurological, intestinal, and vascular involvement. Despite the unknown cause of BD, there is some strong documentation for immunological, genetic, environmental, and infectious factors playing a role in the pathogenesis of BD. While the nature of the genetic variants remains unidentified, many genetic risk factors are considered to contribute to BD susceptibility. Along with human leukocyte antigen gene encoding B*51 (HLA-B*51) and areas including the major histocompatibility complex class I, genome-wide association studies have recognized numerous other BD susceptibility genes including those encoding interleukin (IL)-10, IL-12 receptor β 2 (IL-12RB2), IL-23 receptor (IL-23R), C-C chemokine receptor 1 gene, signal transducer and activator of transcription 4 (STAT4), endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase (ERAP1), and genes encoding killer cell lectin-like receptor family members (KLRC4-KLRK1). It is believed that BD could be considered as a disorder lying in between autoimmune and autoinflammatory syndromes. The positive responses to classical immunosuppressive agents like azathioprine and cyclosporine and involvement of autoantigens in the initiation of the disorder are the main BD features that reflect the autoimmune nature of the disorder. In this review, we address recent findings on the role of common cytokines, antibodies and immunogenetic factors in BD.

Do practical laboratory indices predict the outcomes of children with Henoch-Schönlein purpura?

Objectives: Henoch Schönlein Purpura (HSP) is the most common systemic vasculitis of childhood and often has a self-limiting course. We aimed to study whether practical laboratory parameters at the diagnosis predict disease course including recurrence and nephritis in addition to severe gastrointestinal involvement in children with HSP. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 214 HSP patients, 43.5% (n = 93) female and 56.5% (n =121) male, who were diagnosed in our department. Laboratory parameters before treatment, including neutrophil, lymphocyte and platelet counts, mean platelet volume (MPV), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios (PLR) were obtained retrospectively. Age at diagnosis, duration of follow-up, gender, preceding infections, medications, arthritis and arthralgia, abdominal pain, severe GI involvement, invagination, renal involvement and presence of nephritis, outcomes, and presence of recurrences were retrospectively recorded from medical files. Severe GI involvement was determined as severe colicky abdominal pain, bowel edema in ultrasonography or overt GI bleeding. A relapse was defined as a new flare of cutaneous lesions or other manifestations in a patient at least four asymptomatic weeks after the initial HSP episode. Results: Mean age at diagnosis was 7.6 ± 3.1 years. Biopsy-proven nephritis was found in 16 (7.5%) patients. Severe GI involvement was present in 77 (36%) patients, whereas only 12 (5.6%) patients were diagnosed with intussusception and in 29 (13.5%) patients, HSP recurred. Neutrophil count and NLR were found higher in HSP patients with severe gastrointestinal involvement and biopsy-proven nephritis. Additionally, only platelet count was lower and MPV was higher in patients with recurrent HSP. Conclusion: Elevated neutrophil count and NLR may be relevant markers for severe GI involvement and nephritis, whereas platelet count and MPV were the only laboratory parameters associated with disease recurrence.

The Relation of Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio and Platelet to Lymphocyte Ratio with High Axial Myopia

Purpose: To investigate the relation between high axial myopia and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) values.Methods: Seventy-nine cases were enrolled, 50 myopic and 29 emmetropic. All participants were assigned into three groups: Group I (high myopia with no retinal involvement), Group II (high myopia with retinal involvement) and Group III (control). NLR and PLR values calculated from blood tests were compared among the groups.Results: Mean NLR levels were 2.23 ± 0.78 in Group I, 2.36 ± 1.06 in Group II, and 1.57 ± 0.33 in Group III. Mean PLR levels were 114.62 ± 23.21 in Group I, 145.16 ± 52.36 in Group II, and 91.42 ± 18.73 in Group III. NLR and PLR values in the high myopia groups were significantly higher than in the control group.Conclusion: NLR and PLR values in cases with high axial myopia were higher than in the emmetropic group. Higher inflammation in the degenerative myopic group in particular may be related to pathological chorioretinal changes.

Serum calprotectin and ischemia modified albumin levels as markers of disease activity in Behçet's disease

Introduction

Behçet’s disease (BD) is a complex multisystemic inflammatory disorder which is characterized by recurrent attacks of acute inflammation. As there is no universally recognized pathognomonic laboratory marker of BD, its diagnosis is still based on clinical findings.

Aim

To evaluate the role of calprotectin and ischemia modified albumin (IMA) as biomarkers in the assessment of disease activity of BD.

Material and methods

A total of 93 patients with BD and 62 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were included in the study. Disease activity was assessed with the BD Current Activity Form (BDCAF) score. Serum levels of calprotectin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and IMA were measured in the patient and control groups.

Results

Serum levels of calprotectin, IMA and hsCRP in patients with BD were higher than those of the healthy control group (p < 0.001 for all). No correlations between calprotectin and IMA, hsCRP, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CRP, or BDCAF score were found.

Conclusions

As the calprotectin level are increased in BD patients, it could be a candidate biomarker which plays a role in BD pathogenesis.

Platelet to lymphocyte ratio is associated with the current activity of ANCA-associated vasculitis at diagnosis: a retrospective monocentric study

Platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) has been introduced as a useful index to estimate the current inflammatory burdens in various diseases. In this study, we investigate whether PLR is associated with the severity of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV). We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 163 patients with AAV, collected clinical, laboratory and radiological data and calculated Birmingham vasculitis activity score (BVAS). We defined the lower limit of the highest tertile of BVAS as the cut-off for severe AAV (BVAS ≥ 16). The optimal cut-off of PLR for severe AAV was set as 272.0. The odds ratio (OR) of PLR for severe AAV was assessed using the univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses. The median age at diagnosis was 58.0 years and 51 patients (31.3%) were men. Patients with severe AAV exhibited higher rate of ANCA positivity and higher blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) than those without. Patients with severe AAV exhibited significantly increased median PLR compared to those without (299.3 vs. 184.0). In the univariable binary logistic regression analysis, BUN ≥ 17.45 mg/dL (OR 3.730), Cr ≥ 1.12 mg/dL (OR 3.519), ESR ≥ 83.5 mm/h (OR 2.785), CRP ≥ 20.0 mg/L (OR 2.612), PLR ≥ 272.0 (OR 4.231) and ANCA positivity (OR 2.306) were associated with severe AAV. In the multivariable binary logistic regression analysis, only PLR ≥ 272.0 was an independent predictor of severe AAV at diagnosis (OR 2.734, 95% CI 1.247, 5.993). In conclusion, PLR at diagnosis is associated with the current activity of vasculitis in AAV patients.

Relationship between monocytes to lymphocytes ratio and axial spondyloarthritis

BACKGROUND

Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a progressive, chronic, inflammatory skeletal disorder affecting the spine and sacroiliac joints. Many studies have shown that neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, platelets, and red blood cells (RBCs) play important roles in the inflammatory process of axSpA. Neutrophils to lymphocytes ratio (NLR) and red blood cell distribution width (RDW) have been reported to be simple and inexpensive markers to indicate the disease activity of axSpA. However, the role of monocytes to lymphocytes ratio (MLR) and platelets to lymphocytes ratio (PLR) in axSpA was rarely mentioned.

OBJECTIVE

The study's aim was to determine the role of MLR and PLR in axSpA patients and to investigate their relationships with disease severity.

METHODS

AxSpA patients who fulfilled the Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis International Society classification criteria published in 2009 were enrolled in this study and divided into nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) group and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) group. Healthy age and gender-matched subjects were also enrolled as control group. MLR, PLR, NLR, RDW, C-reactive protein (CRP) level, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) level were assessed. The correlation between the variables with finger-to-floor distance, Modified Schober test, and occiput-to-wall distance were tested with Pearson correlation. Furthermore, area under curve (AUC) value, sensitivity, specificity, and the optimal cutoff values were determined using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves.

RESULTS

A total of 148 axSpA patients (67 nr-axSpA patients and 81 AS patients) and 58 healthy subjects were included in the study. The MLR, NLR, PLR, and RDW in axSpA group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Among them, MLR and RDW were highly increased in AS group compared with the nr-axSpA group (P < 0.05). MLR, NLR, PLR, and RDW were all positively correlated with ESR level and CRP level (P < 0.05). MLR and RDW were positively correlated with finger-to-floor distance and negatively correlated with Modified Schober test (P < 0.05). RDW was positively correlated with occiput-to-wall distance (P < 0.05). ROC curve results showed MLR yielded a higher AUC than NLR, PLR, and RDW (P < 0.05). In addition, the optimal cutoff value of MLR for axSpA was 0.22, with a specificity of 70.9% and sensitivity of 68.4%.

CONCLUSIONS

MLR was elevated in AS patients compared to nr-axSpA patients and had a close relationship with CRP level, ESR level, and spine movements. MLR may be a reliable, cost-effective, and novel potential parameter to evaluate disease severity in axSpA.

Rare esophageal ulcers related to Behçet disease: A case report

RATIONALE

The fundamental pathogenesis of Behçet disease (BD) is still unclear and controversial. Many cases of oral aphthous ulcers and genital ulcers related to BD are reported; nevertheless, idiopathic giant esophageal ulcers related to BD are rare. A rare case for esophageal ulcers related to BD is presented.

PATIENT CONCERNS

In China, BD is represented with esophageal involvement which is called esophageal BD (EBD).

DIAGNOSES

A 56-year-old man diagnosed to the Gastroenterology Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital, for multiple discrete, elliptical esophageal ulcers related to BD.

INTERVENTIONS

The esophageal ulcers were treated with corticosteroid treatment for 12 weeks.

OUTCOME

The esophageal ulcers were cured.

LESSONS

Our report might give further strength to avoiding the erroneous diagnosis or missed diagnosis for EBD, which is different from esophageal carcinoma, esophageal tuberculosis and esophageal Crohns disease.