Can the Peripheral Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio Rule Out Subarachnoid Hemorrhage?

In a retrospective study, this ratio showed great promise as a diagnostic tool.

An elevated peripheral neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is an indicator of inflammation. Investigators from a Turkish university hospital hypothesized that this ratio might differ in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) versus those with migraine or other headache syndromes. They performed a retrospective study of emergency department patients in one of these three categories.

Studied were 121 patients with SAH, 123 with migraine (only migraineurs with neurology clinic follow-up were included), and 987 with other primary headache syndromes. Median NLR was significantly higher in SAH patients than in the migraine or other headache patients, and NLR was an excellent discriminator of SAH from the other two categories, with an area under…

Reviewing Author

Daniel J. Pallin, MD, MPH

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education

Grant/Research SupportAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality; CDC; NIH–National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; NIH–National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); NIH–NIAID–Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group; Merck; Pfizer; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Shire; Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Novartis; bioMérieux; Siemens; Rapid Pathogen Screening; Magnolia; Stago; Innovative Biosensors; Molecular Detection, Inc.; Dyax Corp.; Trius Pharmaceuticals

Daniel J. Pallin, MD, MPH

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education

Can the Peripheral Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio Rule Out Subarachnoid Hemorrhage?

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Reviewing Author