A Study of Platelet to Lymphocyte Ratio in Patients with Metabolic Syndrome

Background: The incidence and prevalence of the metabolic syndrome varies all over the world, showcasing the age and ethnicity of the populations taken into account and the diagnostic criteria applied. Various studies have indicated an association of Metabolic Syndrome (MS) and insulin resistance (IR) with inflammation. Platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) has emerged as a novel inflammatory index that may reflect the extent of inflammation and overall mortality. This study aims to evaluate the PLR in patients with MS and to establish its correlation with the severity of MS. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted on 250 outpatient subjects at SRMS Hospital, Bareilly (125 subjects with Metabolic Syndrome and another 125 age and gender matched control participants without Metabolic Syndrome). Thorough history including history of risk factors if any, physical examinations and basic investigations like complete blood counts, Fasting and Random blood sugars HbA1c levels, fasting lipid profile, ECG were done and the data was analyzed and interpreted using appropriate statistical methods. Results: PLR when compared was 6.9% higher in male?s subjects as compared to female?s subjects with metabolic syndrome. PLR was 95.9% higher in subjects with metabolic syndrome as compared to subjects without metabolic syndrome (pless than0.05). Also, there was a rise in PLR in male subjects as severity of metabolic syndrome increased. Conclusions: In this study, PLR beyond 90 ruled in favour of significant inflammation. PLR is calculated from complete blood count along with differential leucocyte count. It is an affordable, easily and widely available marker of inflammation, which can help in the risk stratification of patients with various cardiovascular diseases along with the traditionally used markers.