Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio predicts early growth of traumatic intracerebral haemorrhage

Ann Clin Transl Neurol. 2021 Aug;8(8):1601-1609. doi: 10.1002/acn3.51409. Epub 2021 Jun 24.

Abstract

Objective: The neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been proposed to capture the inflammatory status of patients with various conditions involving the brain. This retrospective study aimed to explore the association between the NLR and the early growth of traumatic intracerebral haemorrhage (tICH) in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Methods: A multicentre, observational cohort study was conducted. Patients with cerebral contusion undergoing baseline computed tomography for haematoma volume analysis within 6 h after primary injury and follow-up visits within 48 h were included. Routine blood tests were performed upon admission, and early growth of tICH was assessed. Prediction accuracies of the NLR for the early growth of tICH and subsequent surgical intervention in patients were analysed.

Results: There were a total of 1077 patients who met the criteria included in the study cohort. Univariate analysis results showed that multiple risk factors were associated with the early growth of tICH and included in the following multivariate analysis models. The multivariate logistic regression analysis results revealed that the NLR was highly associated with the early growth of tICH (p < 0.001) while considering other risk factors in the same model. The prediction accuracy of the NLR for the early growth of tICH in patients is 82%.

Interpretation: The NLR is easily calculated and might predict the early growth of tICH for patients suffering from TBI.

Publication types

  • Multicenter Study
  • Observational Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Cerebral Hemorrhage, Traumatic / blood*
  • Cerebral Hemorrhage, Traumatic / diagnosis*
  • Cerebral Hemorrhage, Traumatic / pathology
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Leukocyte Count
  • Lymphocytes*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neutrophils*
  • Prognosis
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Risk Factors

Grants and funding

This work was funded by Medical Scientific Research Foundation of Guangdong Province grant A2017168; China Postdoctoral Science Foundation grant 2018M633091; University Development Scheme for Research and Control of Infectious Diseases grant 2015026; National Natural Science Foundation of China grants 81471622 and 81773976; Clinical Improvement Program of Shantou University Medical College grant 201405; Natural Science Foundation grant 2019A1515010649.