Abstract:

Objectives: Platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophillymphocyte ratio (NLR) are commonly studied non-invasive inflammatory markers in cancer patients. There are some studies showing its association with fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between liver histopathology and viral load parameters with NLR, PLR and mean platelet volume (MPV) in patients with CHB. Materials and Methods: Two hundred twenty-four CHB patients who admitted to our clinic between 2016 and 2019 and underwent liver biopsy were analysed retrospectively. Study data were obtained from patient files and electronic records. Results: The mean values in complete blood count were MPV: 10.39±1.114 fL, NLR: 2.093±1.048 and PLR: 106.228±37.451. The mean fibrosis score in liver biopsies was 1.38±1.07 and the histological activity index (HAI) was 5.88±2.27. There was a statistical significant relationship between MPV and fibrosis (r=0.244, p=0.005), HBV-DNA and HAI (r=0.296, p=0.001), HBV-DNA and fibrosis (r=0.278, p=0.001) in men. There was no statistical significant difference between the genders in terms of fibrosis scores and inflammatory parameters. Non-invasive markers didn’t make a statistical significant difference according to HAI <6 and HAI ≥6, fibrosis <2 and fibrosis ≥2 and HBV-DNA <20,000 and HBV-DNA ≥20,000 (p>0.05). Conclusion: It has been determined that MPV may be a useful marker for predicting fibrosis in patients with CHB, but further studies are needed to replace liver biopsy. Continuous monitoring of MPV will contribute to disease surveillance. NLR and PLR weren’t found to be an important marker for evaluating fibrosis.

Keywords: