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Plateletcrit: a sensitive biomarker for evaluating disease activity in Crohn's disease with low hs-CRP
Jian Tang1, Xiang Gao, Min Zhi
1Department of Gastroenterology, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Insights
Plateletcrit (PCT) levels can indicate active Crohn's disease (CD). PCT is a useful biomarker for active CD, particularly when high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels are below 10.0 mg/L.
Area of Science:
- Gastroenterology
- Hematology
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease.
- Non-invasive biomarkers are needed for assessing CD activity.
- Platelet indices are potential candidates for such biomarkers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate platelet indices as non-invasive biomarkers for active Crohn's disease (CD).
- To compare the diagnostic performance of platelet indices with established inflammatory markers.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 130 CD patients and 130 healthy controls.
- Measurement of platelet indices (PLT, MPV, PDW, P-LCR, PCT).
- Determination of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).
Main Results:
- Active CD patients showed higher PLT and PCT, and lower P-LCR and PDW compared to controls and patients in remission.
- Platelet indices (PLT, PDW, P-LCR, PCT) correlated significantly with Crohn's disease activity index (CDAI).
- Plateletcrit (PCT) demonstrated moderate accuracy in detecting active CD, inferior to hs-CRP and ESR, but excelled in patients with hs-CRP < 10.0 mg/L (sensitivity 71%, specificity 85%).
Conclusions:
- Plateletcrit (PCT) shows potential as a specific and sensitive biomarker for active CD.
- PCT is particularly valuable for monitoring disease activity in CD patients with low hs-CRP levels (< 10.0 mg/L).
- Further research may validate PCT's role in clinical practice for CD management.
Objective:
This study aimed to investigate whether PLT indices could act as non-invasive biomarkers for active Crohn's disease (CD).
Methods:
Altogether 130 CD patients and 130 age- and gender-matched healthy volunteers were retrospectively enrolled in the study. CD patients were further divided into patients with active disease (Crohn's disease activity index [CDAI] >150) and in remission. PLT indices including PLT count, mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), platelet large cell ratio (P-LCR) and plateletcrit (PCT) were detected. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) levels were also determined.
Results:
In active CD, PLT and PCT levels were notably higher but P-LCR and PDW levels were lower than those in healthy controls and patients in remission. PLT, PDW, P-LCR and PCT were significantly correlated with CDAI (P < 0.05). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that with a cut-off value of 0.28%, PCT achieved a sensitivity of 67% and a specificity of 63% for detecting active CD, with the area under ROC curve (AUROC) of 0.67, which was inferior to hs-CRP and ESR. For patients with active disease who had hs-CRP levels lower than 10.0 mg/L, PCT turned out to be the best index for monitoring disease activity (sensitivity 71%, specificity 85%, AUROC 0.77, P = 0.02).
Conclusion:
PCT may act as a specific and sensitive biomarker for determining active CD, especially in patients with an hs-CRP level lower than 10.0 mg/L.
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