DVM Laboratory of Veterinary Internal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chungbuk National University Cheongju-si, Ch'ungch'ong-bukto, Republic of Korea
Abstract:
Background: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have been considered inflammatory biomarkers in several diseases. Although changes in NLR and PLR have been identified in humans with Cushing syndrome (CS), changes in these inflammatory biomarkers have not been fully understood in dogs with hypercortisolism (HC).
Objective: To evaluate whether NLR and PLR could be used as biomarkers for the diagnosis and monitoring of treatment response in dogs with HC.
Animals: 67 dogs with HC, 58 dogs with non-adrenal illness (NAI), and 39 healthy dogs.
Methods: Retrospective study. NLR and PLR were compared among the three groups. In addition, the NLR and PLR were compared before and after trilostane treatment.
Results: NLR and PLR were significantly higher in the HC group than in the NAI and healthy groups. The NLR cut-off value of 4.227 had a sensitivity of 67.16% and specificity of 65.52%, and the PLR cut-off value of 285 had a sensitivity of 56.72% and specificity of 70.69% for differentiating between dogs with HC and those with NAI, respectively. Furthermore, a significant decline in NLR was observed after treatment in the well-controlled HC group. The cutoff value of percent change in NLR to identify well-controlled HC was -7.570%; sensitivity and specificity were 100% and 63.64%, respectively.
Conclusion and clinical importance: NLR and PLR might be used cautiously as supportive biomarkers for HC diagnosis, and NLR could be a potential monitoring tool in assessing the treatment response of HC in dogs.