Prognostic performance of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio and platelet/lymphocyte ratio for mortality in patients with acute stroke

Abstract

Objective

To evaluate the prognostic performance of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) for mortality in patients with acute stroke treated at a Peruvian hospital.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

Tertiary care hospital.

Patients

Patients aged ≥18 years with a diagnosis of acute stroke and admitted to the hospital from May 2019 to June 2021.

Interventions

None.

Main variables of interests

Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, and mortality.

Results

A total of 165 patients were included. The mean age was 66.1 ± 14.2 years, and 59.4% were male. Only NLR had a performance superior to 0.7 (AUC: 0.75; 95%CI: 0.65–0.85), and its elevated levels were associated with an increased risk of mortality (aRR: 3.66; 95%CI: 1.77–8.85) after adjusting for confounders.

Conclusion

The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio has an acceptable prognostic performance for mortality in patients with acute stroke. Its use may be considered to stratify patients’ risk and to consider timely alternative care and management.