Evaluating The Accuracy Of The Neutrophil-To-Lymphocyte Ratio In Diagnosing Acute Appendicitis

Area of Science:

• Medical Diagnostics
• Surgical Pathology
• Hematology

Background:

• Acute Appendicitis (AA) is a common surgical emergency causing acute abdomen.
• Timely diagnosis and surgery are crucial to reduce morbidity and mortality risks associated with AA.
• Facility-limited settings require reliable diagnostic markers for AA.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic utility of the Neutrophils to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) for Acute Appendicitis.
• To determine if NLR can improve diagnostic confidence in resource-limited environments.
• To correlate NLR values with confirmed cases of AA.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional validation study involving 100 patients suspected of AA.
• Patients underwent open appendectomy, with demographic, clinical, and complete blood count data collected.
• Neutrophils to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) was calculated from blood counts and compared with histopathology results.

Main Results:

• The study achieved a sensitivity of 70.65% and a specificity of 87.5% for diagnosing AA using NLR.
• Overall accuracy for NLR in diagnosing AA was 72%.
• Positive Predictive Value (PPV) was high at 98.4%, while Negative Predictive Value (NPV) was 20.6%.

Conclusions:

• A significant correlation exists between Neutrophils to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) and Acute Appendicitis.
• An NLR threshold of ≥ 2.5 appears to be a reliable indicator for a more certain AA diagnosis.
• NLR serves as a valuable parameter for diagnosing AA, particularly in settings with limited diagnostic resources.