Predictive role of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios for diagnosis of acute appendicitis during pregnancy

Abstract

Acute appendicitis (AA) is not uncommon during pregnancy but can be difficult to diagnose. This study evaluated the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in addition to conventional diagnostic indicators of the disease to diagnose AA during pregnancy. Age, gestational age, white blood cell (WBC) count, Alvarado scores, C-reactive protein (CRP), lymphocyte count, NLR and PLR were compared among 28 pregnant women who underwent surgery for AA, 35 pregnant women wrongly suspected as having AA, 29 healthy pregnant women, and 30 nonpregnant healthy women. Mean WBC counts and CRP levels were higher in women with proven AA than in those of control groups (all p < 0.05). Among all the groups, the median NLR and PLR were significantly different in women with proven AA (all p < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to determine cut-off values for WBC count, CRP, lymphocyte count, NLR and PLR, and multiple logistic regression analysis showed that NLR and PLR used with routine methods could diagnose AA with 90.5% accuracy. Used in addition to routine diagnostic methods, NLR and PLR increased the accuracy of the diagnosis of AA in pregnant women.

Keywords

• Acute appendicitis
• Alvarado scores
• Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio
• Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio
• Pregnancy