Analysis of leukocyte cell population data (CPD) as biomarkers in the diagnosis of sepsis

Abstract

Background: Leukocyte cell population data (CPD) are parameters currently being studied as biomarkers in sepsis and other pathologies. CPD was procured with the BC 6800 Plus Mindray® hematology analyzer that also provides information on the internal cellular complexity, nucleic acid content, and size of leukocytes. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of CPD parameters as biomarkers in the diagnosis of sepsis by comparing these with the standard sepsis biomarker, procalcitonin (PCT). Methods: In total 107 patients with suspected sepsis were included in the study, and serum procalcitonin levels were measured and WBC cell population data (CPD) were analyzed in a hemogram to confirm the diagnostic accuracy of these biomarkers. ROC curves were plotted for all parameters and patients were categorized based on their serum procalcitonin levels. IBM SPSS Stadistics version 24 was used for statistical analysis of the data. Results: All parameters except the CPD NEU-X (neutrophil complexity), NEU-Z (neutrophil size), LYM-Z (lymphocyte size) and MON-Z (monocyte size) showed statistically significant results (p<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the CPD parameters MON-X and NEU-Y had area under the ROC curve (AUC) > 0.7, reflecting the better diagnostic performance in sepsis. A lower AUC of 0.650 was obtained for PCT; 87.8% of septic patients had serum PCT levels between ≥5 ng/mL and 51.2% ≥ 2 ng/mL. Conclusion: This study suggests that some of the new CPD parameters (MON-X and NEU-Y) have the potential to be a useful diagnostic marker for sepsis.