Published online Jun 21, 2023. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v29.i23.3678
Peer-review started: March 22, 2023
First decision: April 14, 2023
Revised: April 28, 2023
Accepted: May 22, 2023
Article in press: June 21, 2023
Published online: June 21, 2023
The lymphocyte-to-white blood cell ratio (LWR) is a blood marker that reflects the systemic inflammatory response. The prognostic value of the LWR remains unclear in hepatitis B virus-associated acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) patients.
It is necessary to find an easy and effective marker that can reflect the prognosis in HBV-ACLF patients, so we explored whether LWR can risk-stratify poor prognosis in HBV-ACLF patients.
This study aimed to investigate whether LWR could be an easy and useful marker that can identify the risk of poor outcomes in HBV-ACLF patients.
A total of 330 HBV-ACLF patients were included in this study, and patients were divided into survivor and non-survivor groups according to 28-d outcome. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to select independent risk factors for 28-d mortality. The correlation test was performed to evaluate the correlation between LWR and Child-Turcotte-Pugh score (CTPs), model for end-stage liver disease score (MELDs), and Chinese Group on the Study of Severe Hepatitis B-ACLF II score (COSSHACLFIIs). The cutoff value of LWR was calculated by X-tile software, and Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed to assess the association of the LWR level and 28-d outcomes in HBV-ACLF patients.
Low LWR was an independent risk factor for 28-d mortality in patients with HBV-ACLF (hazard ratio = 0.052, 95% confidence interval: 0.005-0.535), and LWR levels were significantly negatively correlated with CTPs, MELDs and COSSHACLFIIs. Moreover, the patients with low LWR levels had a higher 28-d mortality than those with high LWR levels.
LWR is a simple, useful, and effective marker that could stratify the risk of 28-d adverse outcomes in HBV-ACLF patients.
Further large-sample and multicenter prospective studies should be conducted to verify and confirm the prognostic value of the LWR.