Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio predicted cerebral infarction and poor discharge functional outcome in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage: A propensity score matching analysis

BACKGROUND: Neutrophil-lymphocyte-ratio (NLR) and platelet-lymphocyte-ratio (PLR) have emerged as potential biomarkers in predicting the outcomes of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). Since a study was never conducted on the Southeast Asian and Indonesian population, we designed the present study to evaluate the potential of NLR and PLR in predicting cerebral infarction and functional outcomes and find the optimal cutoff value. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients admitted for aSAH in our hospital between 2017 and 2021. The diagnosis was made using a computed tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging and CT angiography. Association between admission NLR and PLR and the outcomes were analyzed using a multivariable regression model. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was done to identify the optimal cutoff value. A propensity score matching (PSM) was then carried out to reduce the imbalance between the two groups before comparison. RESULTS: Sixty-three patients were included in the study. NLR was independently associated with cerebral infarction (odds ratio, OR 1.197 [95% confidence interval, CI 1.027–1.395] per 1-point increment; P = 0.021) and poor discharge functional outcome (OR 1.175 [95% CI 1.036–1.334] per 1-point increment; P = 0.012). PLR did not significantly correlate with the outcomes. ROC analysis identified 7.09 as the cutoff for cerebral infarction and 7.50 for discharge functional outcome. Dichotomizing and performing PSM revealed that patients with NLR above the identified cutoff value significantly had more cerebral infarction and poor discharge functional outcome. CONCLUSION: NLR demonstrated a good prognostic capability in Indonesian aSAH patients. More studies should be conducted to find the optimal cutoff value for each population.