The Association between Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) and the Extent of Coronary Artery Stenosis in Patients with Non-ST Elevation-Acute Coronary Syndrome (NSTE-ACS)

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of mortality in Iran and in the world. Considering the importance of inflammation in atherosclerosis, studying inflammatory factors and their contribution to cardiovascular diseases is essential. Accordingly, this study evaluated the link between neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and coronary artery stenosis in patients undergoing coronary angiography.
This cross-sectional study was performed on 372 patients under coronary angiography due to non-ST elevation-acute coronary syndrome (NSTE-ACS). In addition to demographic characteristics, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio and the extent of coronary artery disease (CAD) were measured in patients. Chi-square and ANOVA tests were used to compare the data.
Findings: There was a direct and significant association between neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio and the extent of coronary artery disease involvement (r = 0.125, P = 0.016). Moreover, by examining the diagnosis accuracy of the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in coronary artery disease, it was found that the best cut-off point was 2.4, the area under curve (ROC) was 0.69, with sensitivity of 72.4% and specificity of 58.3%.
Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio is directly and significantly associated to the extent of involvement of coronary arteries, and it can be used to predict the involvement and extent of coronary artery disease.