Role of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio in identifying complicated appendicitis in the pediatric emergency department.

Abstract

The objective of this research was to evaluate the potential clinical utility of baseline hematological parameters measured on admission as adjuncts in the identification of complicated and uncomplicated appendicitis in children. The records of a total of 334 pediatric patients who underwent curative surgery for acute appendicitis (AA) between 2015 and 2016 were retrospectively investigated. The patients were categorized as complicated or uncomplicated appendicitis based on the histopathological reports. The clinical features and baseline hematological parameters of leukocyte count, neutrophil percentage, thrombocyte count, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), mean platelet volume (MPV), red cell distribution width (RDW), and platelet distribution width (PDW) of the groups were compared. Complicated AA was determined in 36 (10.8%) patients. The white blood cell count (WBC) (p<.001), neutrophil percentage (p<.001), NLR (p<.001), and PLR (p=.004) were higher in the complicated appendicitis group compared with the uncomplicated group, while the RDW, MPV, and PDW levels were uninformative. Analysis of receiver operating characteristic curves yielded the cut-off values of 14.870 cell/mm3 for WBC (area under the curve [AUC]: 0.675; sensitivity: 86.1%; specificity: 41.6%), 10.4 for NLR (AUC: 0.717; sensitivity: 61.1%; specificity: 73.2%), and 284 for PLR (AUC: 0.647; sensitivity: 42%; specificity: 86%) were found to be the best predictive values for the determination of complicated acute appendicitis. The present study demonstrated that AA patients with higher NLR and PLR levels might be more likely to develop a complication. The NLR and PLR values combined with a physical examination, imaging studies, and other laboratory tests may help clinicians to identify high-risk AA patients in the emergency department.