Mean platelet volume as a fibrosis marker in patients with chronic hepatitis C

Abstract

We designed this study to evaluate the role of mean platelet volume (MPV) as a fibrosis marker in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC). Materials and methods: The study was designed at Kayseri Education and Research Hospital. Ninety-five patients with CHC were enrolled retrospectively into the study. The control group comprised 33 age- and sex-matched healthy individuals. Hepatitis C virus-RNA level, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), bilirubin, prothrombin time (PT), platelet count (PC), serum albumin, histological activity index (HAI), liver fibrosis score (LFS), and MPV were obtained from the patients' files and a computerized database. Results: Statistically significant differences in MPV and PC were seen in patients with CHC compared to healthy controls (MPV: 9.1 ± 1.31 fL vs. 8.58 ± 0.8 fL, P = 0.008; PC (×103/µL): 219.37 ± 74.31 vs. 258.52 ± 48.34, P = 0.001). In multivariate analysis, 4 variables remained as independent risk factors: AST (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.21), ALT (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.86 to 0.99), PT (OR 2.11, 95% CI 1.15 to 3.88), and MPV (OR 2.28, 95% CI 1.22 to 4.25). Cut-off values were calculated for diagnostic performance, and the cut-off value for MPV was 8.4 fL. Conclusion: We suggest that high MPV levels (especially those over 8.4 fL) may help to predict advanced fibrosis in patients with CHC. However, it should not be forgotten that MPV is not a specific marker for fibrosis, and the negative predictive rate seems more valuable to exclude a high fibrosis ratio in patients with CHC.