Photo Credit: byakkaya

The following is a summary of “Association of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte ratio with metabolic syndrome in U.S. Adults: Findings from the 1999–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination survey,” published in the March 2025 issue of Journal of Clinical & Translational Endocrinology by Sarrafan-Chaharsoughi et al. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to evaluate an accessible and cost-effective inflammatory biomarker for its accuracy in predicting metabolic syndrome (MetS).  

They analyzed data from adult participants in the 1999–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys to investigate the association between the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and MetS and it was identified using the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (2005 revision) criteria, while NLR was calculated by dividing the absolute neutrophil count by the absolute lymphocyte count. A cross-sectional study design was applied, with data weighted and analyzed using survey procedures in SAS v9.4.  

The results showed that data from 1,01,316 participants were reviewed, with 19,613 eligible for weighted analysis. The MetS was present in 40.3% of individuals (n = 7,896), with 49.4% (n = 3,902) meeting 3 criteria, 35.7% (n = 2,817) meeting 4 criteria, and 14.9% (n = 1,177) meeting all 5 criteria of MetS. Across survey years, the NLR was higher in those with MetS compared to those without (mean 2.24 [95% (CI) 2.21, 2.28] vs 2.05 [95% CI 2.02, 2.08]; P < 0.001) and NLR increased with greater MetS severity (P < 0.001). An NLR cutoff of 1.67 showed 74.3% sensitivity and 62.3% specificity for MetS, with an area under the curve of 0.736 [95% CI 0.73, 0.74].  

Investigators concluded that NLR was independently associated with MetS and its severity, in U.S adults, regardless of age and race/ethnicity. 

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221462372400053X