Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio predicts anastomotic dehiscence

Pre-Treatment Serum Prognostic Scores and Survival in Curatively Treated Laryngeal Cancer

Background

Laryngeal squamous cell cancer (LSCC) is a common head and neck cancer subtype, primarily linked to smoking and alcohol use. Despite declining incidence, survival outcomes have not improved. Prognostic scores, derived from blood-based markers like neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SIII), are increasingly recognized for their potential to predict survival outcomes and guide patient management.

Methods

A retrospective analysis of 473 LSCC patients diagnosed in the West of Scotland (2014-2020) assessed the association of prognostic scores with overall survival (OS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS). Patients were categorized into high- and low-risk groups based on combined scores.

Results

Low LMR and high-risk scores were significantly associated with worse OS, CSS, and RFS. Nodal status and disease stage remained strong predictors. Combining clinicopathological variables with prognostic scores improved survival prediction.

Conclusion

Prognostic scores are valuable tools for survival prediction in LSCC and, when combined with clinicopathological factors, may guide patient management. Further validation is warranted.

LABORATORY PREDICTORS FOR DIAGNOSING COLORECTAL ANASTOMOTIC LEAKAGE

BACKGROUND

An important concern in oncological coloproctology is colorectal anastomotic leakage (AL), which occurs in 3.5%-21% of patients. Predicting the occurrence of failure based on the results of laboratory markers can be decisive for the treatment of this complication.

AIM

To improve the early diagnosis of AL by establishing combinations and threshold values of laboratory markers - predictors of the inflammatory process.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The prospective study, conducted from 2020 to 2023, included 213 rectal cancer patients who underwent low anterior resection after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. The inflammatory biomarkers were assessed before surgery and on the 3rd, 5th, and 7th days of the postoperative period.

RESULTS

AL diagnosed in 25 (11.74%) patients by the grade of severity was as follows: A (radiological) in 7 (3.29%) patients; B (clinical) - 4 (1.88%); C (clinically expressed, peritonitis) - 11 (5.16%), and P (late) - 3 (1.41%) patients. The changes in the laboratory indicators of the inflammatory response such as С-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), the counts of neutrophils (NEU), lymphocytes (LYM), platelets (PLT), and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were significant only in B or C AL grades. Among them, only three indicators were identified as significant for predicting AL when assessed 24 h before the onset of this complication, namely LYM (threshold value ≤ 0.97 × 103/mm3, sensitivity 66.7% and specificity 81.3%, p < 0.001); PLT (threshold value > > 257 103/mm3, sensitivity 58.6%, and specificity 86.7%, p < 0.001); and NLR (threshold value > 4.42, sensitivity 58.1%, and specificity 86.7%, p < 0.001). The three-factor model based on these selected indicators was set up, and the prognosis index (Prog) was proposed with the decision threshold Progcrit = 2.23. The sensitivity of the model was 80% (95% CI 51.9%-95.7%), and the specificity - 74.2% (67.6%-80.2%).

CONCLUSION

Based on the routine laboratory predictors used in the complex diagnosis of AL, B or C AL grades may be predicted allowing for the timely effective early diagnosis, medication, and surgical intervention..

Procalcitonin as an Early Marker of Colorectal Anastomotic Leakage in Postoperative Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background The timely identification of colorectal anastomotic leakage (CAL) is still a significant challenge, and identifying reliable markers is essential to minimize patient morbidity and mortality. While procalcitonin (PCT) has shown promise as a biomarker for CAL, its effectiveness must be specifically evaluated in colorectal cancer patients. This systematic review and meta-analysis sought to assess the mean differences in PCT levels between individuals with and without CAL who underwent colorectal surgery for colorectal cancer. Methodology A comprehensive search of the "PubMed," "Scopus," and "Web of Science" databases was carried out, covering studies published through April 2024. The objective was to identify studies examining PCT levels in colorectal cancer patients who underwent colorectal surgery, with a particular focus on the occurrence of CAL. Data on the mean of PCT levels in CAL and non-CAL patients were extracted from the selected studies. The mean differences in PCT levels were subsequently analyzed for each postoperative day (POD). Results Seventeen articles were selected for inclusion in this systematic review. The statistical analysis included five eligible articles that assessed PCT levels in groups exclusively involving patients with colorectal cancer. The findings showed no significant increase in PCT levels in CAL patients compared to non-CAL patients on any POD when a leave-one-out sensitivity analysis was performed to validate the results. Conclusions To date, PCT levels should not be regarded as early indicators of CAL after colorectal surgery in patients with colorectal cancer. Additional research is necessary to evaluate if PCT could be a dependable marker for CAL in this particular setting.

Negative and Positive Predictors of Anastomotic Leakage in Colorectal Cancer Patients-The Case of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio

Colorectal surgery for cancer is associated with a high rate of surgical complications, including anastomotic leakage. The ability to predict the risk of leakage early enough seems to be of high value, since it would facilitate the design of personalized treatment and duration of hospitalization. Although different studies present the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio [NLR] as having a strong predictive value, there is a discrepancy with respect to which postoperative day is the most reliable. We evaluated a series of NLR values, from the day before surgery up to the POD7, in a cohort of 245 colorectal surgery patients in order to clarify the best predictable score for the identification of the risk of anastomotic leakage. There were 28 patients with leaks. ROC curve analysis of NLR on POD1 indicates that a cut-off point ≥ 7.4 exerts a negative prediction for leakage (AUC 0.881, sensitivity 68.7%, specificity 96.4%, PPV 28.4%, and NPV of 99.3%), thus excluding 150 patients from the risk of leakage. Furthermore, the ROC curve analysis of NLR on POD4 indicates that a cut-off point ≥ 6.5 gives a positive prediction of leakage (AUC 0.698, sensitivity 82.1%, specificity 51.6%, PPV 17.6%, and NPV of 95.6%), thus indicating 52 patients as being at high risk of leakage. Finally, NLR failed to identify five leaks out of twenty-eight. These results strongly indicate the ability of NLR on POD1 to predict patients at low risk of developing a leak and then on POD4 to predict the high-risk patients. This makes our study particularly innovative, in that it enables doctors to concentrate on potential high-risk patients from POD1.

Drainage fluid LDH and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio as biomarkers for early detecting anastomotic leakage in patients undergoing colorectal surgery

OBJECTIVES

In this study, we investigated the role of several circulating and drainage fluid biomarkers for detecting postoperative complications (PCs) and anastomotic leakage (AL) in patients undergoing colorectal surgery.

METHODS

All consecutive patients undergoing colorectal surgery between June 2018 and April 2020 were prospectively considered. On postoperative days (POD) 1, 3, and 5, we measured lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in drainage fluid, C-reactive protein (CRP) in serum and drainage fluid, and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR).

RESULTS

We enrolled 187 patients. POD1 patients with AL had higher serum CRP levels, while on POD3 and on POD5 higher NLR and serum CRP. LDH and CRP in drainage fluid were also significantly higher at both time points. The area under the curves (AUCs) of serum and drainage fluid CRP were 0.752 (0.629-0.875) and 0.752 (0.565-0.939), respectively. The best cut-off for serum and drainage fluid CRP was 185.23 and 76 mg/dL, respectively. The AUC of NLR on POD3 was 0.762 (0.662-0.882) with a sensitivity and specificity of 84 and 63 %, respectively, at a cut-off of 6,6. Finally, drainage fluid LDH showed the best diagnostic performance for AL, with an AUC, sensitivity, and specificity of 0.921 (0.849-0.993), 82 %, and 90 % at a cut-off of 2,186 U/L. Trends in serum parameters between patients with or without PCs or AL were also evaluated. Interestingly, we found that NLR decreased faster in patients without PCs than in patients with PCs and patients with AL.

CONCLUSIONS

Drainage fluid LDH and NLR could be promising biomarkers of PCs and AL.

Systematic review of the significance of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in anastomotic leak after gastrointestinal surgeries

INTRODUCTION

The inflammatory response is thought to be a critical initiator of epigenetic alterations. The neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), a biomarker of inflammation, is computed by dividing the number of neutrophils by the number of lymphocytes. The primary goal of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the pre-operative NLR of gastrointestinal surgery patients who had an anastomotic leak (AL) in comparison to those who did not AL.

METHODS

We performed a comprehensive search for relevant papers published before May 4, 2022, using PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Standardized mean difference (SMD) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was pooled in meta-analysis to yield a summary estimate. We utilized the random-effects model to create pooled effects since we discovered a substantial heterogeneity level. For evaluating quality, the Newcastle-Ottawa scale (NOS) was implemented.

RESULTS

The research comprised 12 studies with a total of 2940 individuals who had GI operations, 353 of whom went on to develop AL. We discovered that patients who had GI surgeries and acquired AL had significantly higher NLR levels than those who did not (random-effects model: SMD = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.11-1.38, p = 0.02). Patients with AL showed significantly higher NLR levels than control group in retrospective studies (SMD = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.20-1.66, p=0.01) but not in prospective studies (SMD = - 0.11, 95% CI = - 0.65-0.43, p = 0.69), according to the subgroup analysis based on research design. Subgroup analysis based on ethnicity yielded that white patients with AL exhibited significantly higher NLR values than the control group (SMD = 1.35, 95% CI = 0.01-2.68, p = 0.04) but this result was not applied to East Asian patients (SMD = 0.14, 95% CI = -0.13-0.41, p = 0.29).

CONCLUSION

Our research suggests a potential association between preoperative NLR and postoperative AL. However, it is essential to acknowledge the variability in the findings, with significantly higher NLR levels observed in retrospective studies and among white patients, but not consistently replicated in prospective studies and among East Asian patients. Further investigations with larger and more diverse cohorts are warranted to validate these findings and explore potential factors contributing to the observed discrepancies.

Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio as an Early Predictor of Symptomatic Anastomotic Leakage in Patients after Rectal Cancer Surgery: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis

Background: This study aimed to explore the role of postoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in predicting symptomatic anastomotic leakage in patients who underwent laparoscopic low anterior resection for rectal cancer. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we analyzed data of patients who underwent laparoscopic low anterior resection from May 2009 to May 2019. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed to evaluate the cut-off values with the best predictive efficacy of a symptomatic anastomotic leakage. In addition, a propensity score-matched analysis was performed by considering all covariate variables, and 61 patients with or without symptomatic anastomotic leakage were included in the analysis. Results: The present study included 306 patients; of these, 17 (5.56%) developed symptomatic anastomotic leakage after surgery. On postoperative day 5, compared with patients without symptomatic anastomotic leakage, those with leakage had significantly higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte levels. Notably, a neutrophil-to-lymphocyte cut-off score of 6.54 indicated the best area under the curve of 0.818 (95% confidence interval: 0.697−0.940, p < 0.001) in predicting symptomatic anastomotic leakage, with a sensitivity and specificity of 76.5% and 79.4%, respectively. Conclusions: Although evidence for the predictive role of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is accumulating, it remains inconclusive. In addition, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte levels should be considered a predictive biomarker for symptomatic anastomotic leakage; however, it can more accurately be viewed as an adjunct that helps increase the clinical suspicion of emerging symptomatic anastomotic leakage.

Peripheral blood inflammation indices are effective predictors of anastomotic leakage in elective esophageal surgery

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the predictive value of peripheral inflammatory indices, including neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, platelet count, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), in anastomotic leakage during elective esophageal surgery.

METHODS

This retrospective study included all patients who underwent esophagectomy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma from 2016 to 2020 in our institution. The peripheral blood inflammatory indices were obtained on preoperative days 1-7 (PRD 1-7), and postoperative days 1-3 (POD 1-3) and 4-7 (POD 4-7). Univariate, multivariate logistic, and receiver operating characteristic curve analyses were conducted to evaluate the diagnostic value of these peripheral blood inflammatory indices.

RESULTS

A total of 198 patients were included in the study, and 25 (13%) patients experienced anastomotic leakage. Multivariate analyses identified diet, neutrophil count, and PLR on POD 1-3, and NLR on POD 4-7 as independent factors associated with anastomotic leakage. Using the receiver operating characteristic curve, the variable with the best area under curve was a neutrophil cutoff count of 4.1 [0.737; 95% CI: 0.639-0.835], with a sensitivity and specificity of 60.0% and 66.5%, respectively. This was followed by an NLR cutoff value of 9.5 on POD 4-7 (0.628; 95% CI: 0.505-0.752) and a cutoff PLR value of 220.1 on POD 1-3 (0.643; 95% CI: 0.536-0.750). Diet showed a poor result on the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

Neutrophil count and PLR on POD 1-3 and NLR on POD 4-7 were shown to have predictive value for anastomotic leakage in elective esophageal surgery.

Blood cell count indexes as predictors of anastomotic leakage in elective colorectal surgery: a multicenter study on 1432 patients

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to evaluate a series of blood count inflammation indexes in predicting anastomotic leakage (AL) in elective colorectal surgery.

METHODS

Demographic, pathologic, and clinical data of 1432 consecutive patients submitted to colorectal surgery in eight surgical centers were retrospectively evaluated. The neutrophil to lymphocyte (NLR), derived neutrophil to lymphocyte (dNLR), lymphocyte to monocyte (LMR), and platelet to lymphocyte (PLR) ratios were calculated before surgery and on the 1st and 4th postoperative days, in patients with or without AL.

RESULTS

There were 106 patients with AL (65 males, mean age 67.4 years). The NLR, dNLR, and PLR were significantly higher in patients with AL in comparison to those without, on both the 1st and 4th postoperative days, but significance was greater on the 4th postoperative day. An NLR cutoff value of 7.1 on this day showed the best area under the curve (AUC 0.744; 95% CI 0.719-0.768) in predicting AL.

CONCLUSIONS

Among the blood cell indexes of inflammation evaluated, NLR on the 4th postoperative day showed the best ability to predict AL. NLR is a low cost, easy to perform, and widely available index, which might be potentially used in clinical practice as a predictor of AL in patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery.