Role of platelet-to-Lymphocyte ratio and other markers in predicting
severity and prognosis in COVID-19 patients
Abstract
Background: COVID-19 is a pandemic respiratory tract disease
caused by Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
(SARS-COV2). Its clinical manifestations range from
asymptomatic to acute respiratory failure, multi-organ dysfunction, and
death. Purpose: This study revealed the utility of
platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) as a severity and mortality marker in
COVID-19 infection, as well as its connection with other inflammatory
indicators such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and neutrophil-lymphocyte
ratio (NLR). Methods: A total of 400 patients (206 males and
104 females; mean age: 64.5±17.1, years; range, 20-100 years) were
hospitalized with COVID-19 between April 2020 and December 2021. The
patient’s demographic and clinical information, including ward and
critical care data, were gathered from their medical records. On the
first and last days, the CRP, NLR, and PLR values of the patients, who
were divided into groups based on their hospitalization and outcomes,
were analyzed. Results: The results showed that the PLR had
statistically significant (P value=0.012) elevation, at the beginning of
the hospitalization period it was 245±160, while at the end of the
period it had increased to 341±747 (P value = 0.012). there was a
significant association between PLR and length of hospital stay and
mortality, there was also a substantial correlation between PLR and the
last status of the participants, these analyses showed that the mean PLR
in the dead group was 445±590, whereas 304±795 in the survived group
which is statistically significant with P value=0.007, that supports our
hypothesis that there is a correlation between higher PLR and severity
of COVID-19 infection and mortality rate. Conclusion: In
patients hospitalized with COVID-19, the specificity of PLR values at
the point of severity and outcome was shown to be as CRP and NLR values,
this demonstrates that there is a significant association between these
markers and length of hospital stay and mortality. The higher NLR, the
longer the hospital stays and the worse the prognosis, there was a
significant correlation between age, days of admission and mortality.