Comparison of the Accuracy of Modified CT Severity Index Score and Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio in Assessing the Severity of Acute Pancreatitis.

Background Acute pancreatitis is an acute gastrointestinal emergency with significant morbidity and mortality if not treated. It can lead to local as well as systemic complications and has a prevalence of 51.07%. Laboratory investigations such as amylase and lipase and ultrasound scan are typically used for the diagnosis. A contrast-enhanced CT scan is considered the gold standard. Both laboratory and radiological investigation-based scoring systems have been reported in the literature and are in practice. However, these modalities demand several laboratory investigations and are expensive. Our study aims to determine the congruency of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the modified CT severity index score (MCTSI) with the revised Atlanta classification in assessing the severity of acute pancreatitis. In addition, the accuracy of NLR and MCTSI is determined. The secondary objective is to determine whether NLR can predict the severity of acute pancreatitis to the same extent as MCTSI through expensive radiological imaging and other clinical scoring systems through a list of investigations. Methodology The data for this study were collected retrospectively and patients with a diagnosis of acute pancreatitis were included through the nonprobability convenience sampling method. All patients underwent relevant laboratory workup (including complete blood count) and radiological workup (including CT scan) during their hospital stay. The main outcome measures were sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of NLR and MCTSI, and the congruency of these with the revised Atlanta classification in assessing the severity of acute pancreatitis. Results A total of 166 patients with acute pancreatitis were included, of which 107 (64.45%) were males and 59 (35.55%) were females, with a mean age of 43.7. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of NLR were 67%, 90.9%, and 76%, respectively, whereas the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of MCTSI were 95%, 13.6%, and 62%, respectively. The area under the curve for NLR was 0.855 whereas that for MCTSI was determined to be 0.645. Conclusions NLR has a good concordance with the revised Atlanta classification and assesses the disease severity, especially in moderate-to-severe cases of acute pancreatitis compared to MCTSI. In addition, NLR can be used in acute and/or resource-poor settings to predict the severity of acute pancreatitis.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
(Copyright © 2021, Tahir et al.)