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Neutrophils to lymphocytes ratio between benign and malignant thyroid nodule

Nazia Haider1, Zahid Mahmood2, Fizzah Khalid3

  • 1Dr. Nazia Haider (MBBS, FCPS General Surgery Resident), Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi, Pakistan.

Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences
|December 16, 2021
PubMed

Insights

The Neutrophils to Lymphocytes Ratio (NLR) does not effectively differentiate between benign and malignant thyroid nodules. Preoperative NLR values showed no significant difference in this study.

Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology and Oncology
  • Hematology
  • Surgical Pathology

Background:

  • Thyroid nodules are common, with a subset being malignant.
  • Distinguishing benign from malignant nodules preoperatively is crucial for patient management.
  • The Neutrophils to Lymphocytes Ratio (NLR) is an inflammatory marker that has been investigated for various conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between preoperative Neutrophils to Lymphocytes Ratio (NLR) values and the distinction between benign and malignant thyroid nodules.
  • To assess the diagnostic utility of NLR in differentiating thyroid nodule types.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional clinical study involving 216 patients who underwent thyroidectomy.
  • Patients were categorized into benign thyroid nodule (BTN) and malignant thyroid nodule (MTN) groups based on histopathology.
  • Preoperative complete blood count data was analyzed to calculate NLR.

Main Results:

  • No statistically significant difference was observed in mean neutrophil counts between the BTN (4.26 ± 2.8) and MTN (4.41 ± 2.2) groups (p=0.71).
  • Mean lymphocyte counts were also similar between groups: BTN (3.81 ± 0.9) and MTN (3.61 ± 1.2) (p=0.18).
  • The mean NLR values were comparable: 1.19 ± 2.2 for BTN and 1.22 ± 1.8 for MTN (p=0.92).

Conclusions:

  • Preoperative NLR values do not provide sufficient evidence to differentiate between benign and malignant thyroid nodules.
  • Neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, and NLR are not reliable preoperative biomarkers for distinguishing thyroid nodule malignancy.
Abstract

Keywords:
Neutrophils to lymphocytes ratioThyroid nodules

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