Can Hematologic Parameters be an Indicator of Metabolic Disorders Accompanying Rosacea?

Recently, diverse hematologic parameters have been used as an indicator of the presence or severity of inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases. Our aim was to investigate the ratios of neutrophils to lymphocytes (NL), monocytes to high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (MHC), and platelets to lymphocytes (PL) in patients with rosacea in comparison with the control group and determine whether there was a correlation between these ratios and metabolic disorders in patients with rosacea. We conducted a case-control study on 61 patients with rosacea and 60 healthy controls between January 2015 and January 2016 at the Dermatology Outpatient Clinic, Mugla, Turkey. Demographic data, biochemical parameters, hematologic parameters and ratios, the presence of metabolic syndrome (MS), and the presence of insulin resistance (IR) in the participants were recorded. Sixty one patients with rosacea (16 men, 45 women) and 60 controls (13 men, 47 women) were included in the study. The NL ratio, mean levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and total cholesterol, triglyceride, C-reactive protein (CRP), systolic and diastolic blood pressures, and the presence of IR were significantly higher in patients with rosacea than in controls. In the rosacea group, the MHC ratio was significantly higher in patients with rosacea with IR and MS. Moreover, only the MHC ratio was an independent predictor of MS according to univariate logistic regression analysis. The cutoff value of MHC on admission for predicting MS in patients with rosacea was 0.013.The higher levels of NL ratio and IR in the rosacea group corroborate the previous studies demonstrating a high level of cardiovascular risk factors in patients with rosacea. The MHC ratio may be used as a simple and inexpensive method to predict metabolic disorders in patients with rosacea.