Could neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio be an indicator of coronary artery disease, coronary artery ectasia and coronary slow flow?

Objective To determine whether neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) differed between patients with isolated coronary artery disease (CAD), isolated coronary artery ectasia (CAE), coronary slow flow and normal coronary anatomy. Methods Patients who underwent coronary angiography were consecutively enrolled into one of four groups: CAD, coronary slow flow, CAE and normal coronary anatomy. Results The CAD ( n = 40), coronary slow flow ( n = 40), and CAE ( n = 40) groups had similar NLRs (2.51 ± 0.7, 2.40 ± 0.8, 2.6 ± 0.6, respectively) that were significantly higher than patients with normal coronary anatomy ( n = 40; NLR, 1.73 ± 0.7). Receiver operating characteristics demonstrated that with NLR > 2.12, specificity in predicting isolated CAD was 85% and sensitivity was 75%, with NLR > 2.22 specificity in predicting isolated CAE was 86% and sensitivity was 75%. With NLR > 1.92, specificity in predicting coronary slow flow was 89% and sensitivity was 75%. Multivariate logistic regression analyses identified NLR as an independent predictor of isolated CAE (β = -0.499, 95% CI -0.502, -0.178; P <  0.001), CAD (β = -0.426, 95% CI -1.321, -0.408; P <  0.001), and coronary slow flow (β = -0.430, 95% CI -0.811, -0.240; P = 0.001 Table 2 ). Conclusions NLR was higher in patients with CAD, coronary slow flow and CAE versus normal coronary anatomy. NLR may be an indicator of CAD, CAE and coronary slow flow.