Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in type 2 diabetes mellitus and its correlation with renal function: An institutional experience

Abstract

Introduction: Patients with diabetes mellitus commonly develop chronic vascular complications including diabetic nephropathy (DN). Chronic inflammation plays an important role in pathogenesis of diabetes and its complications. Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) is a novel potential marker for determining inflammation. Objective: To study NLR in type 2 diabetes mellitus and its correlation with renal function. Method: This study is a cross-sectional observational study conducted at a tertiary care hospital. This study included 200 patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus, 100 of whom had deranged renal functions and 100 patients had normal renal function. The control group was composed of 100 healthy age and sex-matched subjects. NLR was calculated and statistical analysis was made using student's t-test, post HOC test, and ANOVA. A value of P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: When NLR was compared among three groups, NLR was significantly higher in diabetic patients as compared to controls and NLR was significantly higher in diabetic nephropathy group as compared to the diabetic with normal renal function group and control group. Conclusions: NLR is a novel, simple and inexpensive marker that can be used as a measure of systemic inflammation in diabetes and correlates with severity of diabetic nephropathy.