Prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in patients undergoing endovenous ablation therapy for venous insufficiency

Patients and methods: A total of 284 Clinical-Etiology-Anatomy-Pathophysiology (CEAP) classification 2 to 6 patients (196 males, 88 females; mean age: 57 years; range, 23 to 87 years) who underwent EVA due to the symptoms of great saphenous vein insufficiency between January 2016 and December 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. Of these patients, 146 (52.1%) received radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and 138 (47.9%) received endovenous glue ablation (EGA) treatment. The patients were followed at three hours, on Day 7, at one and six months after the procedure. The NLR, procedural success, and perioperative complications were evaluated.

Results: The mean preoperative NLR was 3.03±0.9 in the RFA and 3.36±1.2 in the EGA group. The patients with a higher NLR had significantly a higher rate of postoperative ecchymosis (hazard ratio: 1.05; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01-1.10; p=0.033) and postoperative pain (hazard ratio: 1.1; 95% CI: 1.01-1.2; p=0.04). At six months, we found that higher NLR was correlated with partial recanalization rate in the RFA (r=0.84) and high mean VCSS. The NLR was found to be predictive for complications with a sensitivity of 75% and specificity of 62%.

Conclusion: Our study results suggest that the NLR is a quick, cheap, and easily measurable inflammatory marker and is a surrogate marker of perioperative outcomes in patients undergoing EVA therapy.