Abstract
We read with great interest the article “Correlation of Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio With the Presence and Severity of Metabolic Syndrome” by Buyukkaya et al. 1 They aimed to investigate the relationship between the criteria comprising metabolic syndrome (MS) and neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio (N/L ratio) as a novel, simple, and reliable indicator of inflammation. They showed that patients with MS had significantly higher N/L ratio compared to those without MS. Furthermore, N/L ratio increased as the severity of MS increased. A strong positive correlation was revealed between the severity of MS and N/L ratio and between the severity of MS and the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP). In addition, the correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between hsCRP and NLR in the patient population. The measurements of white blood cells (WBCs), neutrophils, and lymphocytes in the patients with MS were higher than those without MS. The study is successful in planning and presenting the results. We believe that these findings will enlighten further studies about the association between the severity of MS and the N/L ratio. Thanks to the authors for their contribution.
The WBC count is one of the useful inflammatory biomarkers in clinical practice. Leukocyte subtype and N/L ratio are also indicators of systemic inflammation. Although WBCs are in normal range, subtypes of WBCs may predict cardiovascular mortality. The N/L ratio is also an inflammatory marker of major adverse cardiac events. 2 Some comments may be of interest. Although the authors have showed patients with MS had significantly higher N/L ratio compared to those without MS, some of the factors affecting these markers such as smoking, alcohol, and malignancy were not mentioned in this study. In addition, the authors could add a MS subgroup analysis. A subgroup analysis of MS according to age, sex, CRP, WBCs, neutrophils, and lymphocytes might affect the results of the study.