ASSOCIATION BETWEEN NEUTROPHIL-TO-LYMPHOCYTE RATIO AND TROPONIN LEVELS IN PATIENTS WITH ACUTE CORONARY SYNDROME
Nadir AJRULI, Nexhbedin ABAZI, Mentor KAREMANI, Mentor NUREDINI, Anida F. KAREMANI
Abstract
Background: Acute coronary syndrome is strongly associated with myocardial injury and inflammatory response. In this study, we sought to examine the relationship between NLR and troponin levels in patients with acute coronary syndrome.
Methods: In this retrospective study, we analyzed clinical data obtained from the records of 410 patients with acute myocardial infarction, who had been hospitalized in our institution during January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025. Demographic information as well as data regarding neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, NLR, and troponin were extracted from patient files. Logarithmic transformation was done because troponin values were not normally distributed. For correlation analysis, both Pearson and Spearman correlation tests were used for examining the relationship between NLR and troponin.
Results: The mean age of patients was 63.3 ± 10.5 years, and 75.1% of the sample was males. The prevalence of STEMI and NSTEMI were 58.8% and 41.2%, respectively. The mean NLR and troponin value was 6.1 ± 3.8 and 9099.9 ± 9948.0, respectively. A significant positive relationship was noted between NLR and troponin, according to Pearson correlation analysis (r = 0.63, P < .001) and Spearman correlation analysis (ρ = 0.63, P < .001).
Conclusion: The association between increased NLR levels and increased troponin levels was statistically significant among the participants suffering from acute coronary syndrome. The findings further demonstrate the association between systemic inflammation and myocardial damage, providing evidence for using NLR as a useful and cost-effective auxiliary marker for the early diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction.
Pages: 309 - 314