The role of the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio for pre-operative risk stratification of acute kidney injury after tetralogy of Fallot repair

Association of preoperative neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio with acute kidney injury in patients with non-cardiac surgery: difference among surgical types

PURPOSE

To examine the relationship between Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) and Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery, and subgroup analysis was performed for different types of non-cardiac surgery.

METHODS

The present retrospective cohort study included 10,159 adult patients who underwent major noncardiac surgery at Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, between 2008 and 2018. Postoperative AKI was defined as an increase in serum creatinine level of at least 0.3 mg/dl within 48 h, or 1.5 times higher than baseline within 7 days postoperatively according to the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcome. The correlation between preoperative NLR and postoperative AKI was determined by stepwise multivariate logistic regression analysis, and the predictive value of NLR was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis.

RESULTS

Four hundred and eighty-five (4.77%) patients developed AKI postoperatively. Preoperative NLR was independently associated with postoperative AKI in all patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery (Odds ratio [OR], 1.03; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-1.06). The optimal cut-off value of NLR was 2.12 according ROC analysis. The OR and 95% CI of AKI for NLR > 2.12 was 1.48 (1.21-1.81) compared with NLR ≤ 2.12. In addition, the positive association was mainly shown in patients undergone digestive system surgery with a cut-off value of 2.12 but not in neurological and musculoskeletal system surgeries.

CONCLUSION

The present study confirmed the association of preoperative NLR with postoperative AKI in digestive system surgical patients. A NLR value of 2.12 may be a useful cut-off to evaluate the risk of AKI.

Risk factors and outcomes associated with acute kidney injury following extracardiac total cavopulmonary connection: a retrospective observational study

BACKGROUND

Total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) is an important operation for the treatment of complex congenital heart disease. Epidemiology and outcomes for pediatric patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) following extracardiac TCPC have not been well documented. This study investigates the prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes of AKI in children after extracardiac TCPC surgery.

METHODS

We retrospectively evaluated patients (age at surgery <18 years) who underwent extracardiac TCPC surgery between January 2008 and January 2020 in the Pediatric Cardiac Surgical Center of Fuwai Hospital, Beijing, China. AKI was defined according to the pediatric-modified risk, injury, failure, loss of function, and end-stage renal disease criteria.

RESULTS

A total of 377 pediatric patients were included in this study; 123 patients (32.6%) had some degree of AKI. Among the patients with AKI, 101 (82.1%) were diagnosed with AKI-risk (AKI-R), while 22 (17.9%) were diagnosed with acute kidney injury/failure (AKI/F) (16 with AKI, and 6 with AKF). Preoperative estimated creatinine clearance (OR: 1.039, 95% CI: 1.024-1.055, P<0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (OR: 1.208, 95% CI: 1.128-1.294, P<0.001), and renal perfusion pressure (OR: 0.962, 95% CI: 0.938-0.986, P=0.002) on postoperative day (POD) 0 were significantly associated with AKI after TCPC. Having previously undergone a bidirectional Glenn was significantly associated with the severity of postoperative AKI (OR: 0.253, 95% CI: 0.088-0.731, P=0.011). Furthermore, AKI was associated with prolonged mechanical ventilation time, prolonged intensive care unit stay, and composite adverse outcome. Compared with non-AKI patients, the 10-year survival rate of patients with severe AKI was significantly lower (95.5% vs. 65.9%, P=0.009).

CONCLUSIONS

Although the incidence of AKI was high in patients undergoing TCPC surgery, most cases were AKI-R. Severe AKI was significantly associated with early adverse outcomes and poor long-term survival.

Preoperative lymphocyte percentage and neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio are useful predictors of 30-day postoperative complications after lumbar fusion

Background:

Lymphocyte percentage/count, platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) have shown prognostic significance in patients with cancer, stroke, and following cardiac surgery. However, the utility of these blood parameters for assessing the 30-day postoperative risk for lumbar fusion complications has not been established.

Methods:

In this single-center-single-surgeon retrospective series, 77 consecutive patients underwent one- or two-level lumbar fusion. Lymphocyte percentage/count, PLR, and NLR were investigated as predictors of 30-day postoperative complications.

Results:

Ten of 77 patients had postoperative complications. A unit increase in NLR and lymphocyte percentage was significantly associated with a 23% increase and 7% decrease, respectively, in the odds of a complication occurring. Preoperative NLR ≥ 2.32 and lymphocyte percentage ≤ 29.5% significantly discriminated between the “complication” and “no-complication” groups.

Conclusion:

Patients with a preoperative lymphocyte percentage of ≤29.5% and/or NLR ≥2.32 should be closely monitored as high-risk groups susceptible to 30-day postoperative complications after lumbar fusion.

Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio in Congenital Heart Surgery: What Is Known and What Is New?

Operative mortality after repair of congenital heart disease has improved dramatically over the past few decades. Nevertheless, there is always room for the additional mitigation of complications and mortality. Being able to anticipate adverse outcomes is clearly important, especially when using low-cost and easily accessible resources. The neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is defined as the ratio of the absolute neutrophil to lymphocyte count, which can be easily measured using a regular white blood cell count. Recently, preoperative NLR has been shown to be a predictor of outcomes in patients undergoing congenital heart surgery. Although it presented promising results, there are still many gaps to be filled like the normal value for children, the ideal cutoff value to predict adverse outcomes, the wide variation and its correlation with other biomarkers, and if it is a modifiable risk factor. The aim of this review is to understand the prognostic value of preoperative NLR as a biomarker predictor of outcomes in patients undergoing congenital heart surgery based on previous clinical studies and to propose future directions in order to solve the above-mentioned questions.

The association between neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and poor outcomes following infant cardiac surgery

Background

Neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a valuable indicator for evaluating inflammation and adverse outcomes after cardiac surgery. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of perioperative NLR with clinical outcomes in infants undergoing congenital heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass.

Methods

We performed a retrospective review of 424 consecutive infants (≤ 1 year) undergoing cardiac surgery between January 2019 and September 2019. Neonates (≤ 28 days) and patients with incomplete NLR data were excluded. The study endpoint was a composite of poor outcomes after surgery. We assess the correlation between perioperative NLR and clinical outcomes. A receiver operating characteristic curve and multivariable logistic regression were applied to identify the prognosis performance of postoperative NLR for poor outcomes.

Results

A total of 68 (16%) infants experienced at least one of the poor outcomes. Postoperative NLR on the third day after the surgery showed the best prognostic significance (AUC = 0.763, 95%CI 0.700–0.826) among perioperative period, with a cut-off value of 2.05. Postoperative NLR was also strongly correlated with mechanical ventilation time, length of ICU and hospital stay (p < 0.001). Multivariable logistic regression revealed that elevated postoperative NLR (OR 3.722, 95%CI 1.895–7.309, p < 0.001) was an independent risk factor for poor outcomes in infants after cardiac surgery.

Conclusions

Postoperative NLR was correlated with increased mechanical ventilation time, length of ICU and hospital stay. Elevated postoperative NLR was an independent predictor for poor outcomes after cardiac surgery in infants.

Preoperative Glucose-to-Lymphocyte Ratio is an Independent Predictor for Acute Kidney Injury After Cardiac Surgery in Patients in Intensive Care Unit

Background

We aimed to investigate the association between preoperative glucose-to-lymphocyte ratio (GLR) and cardiac surgery associated with acute kidney injury (CSA-AKI) in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods

The Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV version 1.0) database was used to identify adults' patients who performed cardiac surgery during ICU stay. The primary outcome was the development of AKI based on the KDIGO criteria. Multivariable logistic regression was applied to investigate the association between GLR and clinical outcomes, and propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were also used to validate our findings.

Results

The optimal cut-off value for GLR was 1.28. Among the 7181 patients who conducted cardiac surgery, 2072 high-GLR group (≥1.28) patients and 2072 low-GLR group (<1.28) patients, had similar propensity scores were included in this study. After matching, the high-GLR group had a significantly higher incidence of AKI (odds ratio, OR, 3.28, 95% confidence index, 95% CI, 2.81-3.84, P <0.001) even after adjustment for confounding factors. Moreover, the performance of GLR was superior to that of SOFA scores and GLR plus clinical model could add more net benefit for CSA-AKI than clinical model alone.

Conclusion

Preoperative GLR could serve as a good predictor for CSA-AKI in patients in ICU.