Monocyte-to-Neutrophil Ratio as an Immunological Marker of Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Children with Primary Hypertension

• Published in: Journal of clinical medicine Vol. 14; no. 11; p. 3896
• Main Authors: Dziedzic-Jankowska, Katarzyna, Pietrzak, Radosław, Szyszka, Michał, Bujanowicz, Adam, Stelmaszczyk-Emmel, Anna, Werner, Bożena, Skrzypczyk, Piotr
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.06.2025; MDPI
• Subjects: Atherosclerosis; Blood; Blood platelets; Blood pressure; Blood tests; Body mass index; C-reactive protein; Cardiovascular disease; Care and treatment; Children; Complications and side effects; Cytokines; Diagnosis; Health aspects; Heart enlargement; Heart failure; Hypertension; Immunology; Inflammation; Interleukins; Leukocytes; Lymphocytes; Medical examination; Meta-analysis; Neutrophils; Pathogenesis; Pediatrics; Pulmonary hypertension; Risk factors; Teenagers; Poland; United States > US; left ventricular mass index; left ventricular hypertrophy; monocyte-to-neutrophil ratio; children; primary hypertension; subclinical inflammation
• ISSN: 2077-0383; 2077-0383
• DOI: 10.3390/jcm14113896

Background/Objectives: Activation of the immune system and subclinical inflammation participate in the pathogenesis of primary hypertension (PH) and the formation of hypertension-mediated organ damage. Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between subclinical inflammation and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in pediatric patients with PH. Methods: In 34 untreated children with PH (15.1 ± 2.1 years, 28 boys, 6 girls), we investigated markers of subclinical inflammation (high-sensitivity CRP, interleukin 18, and complete blood count-derived indices), parameters of the left ventricle from 2D-echocardiography, office and ambulatory blood pressure, and selected clinical and biochemical parameters. Results: LVH was revealed in 12 (35.3%) patients, and abnormal relative wall thickness (RWT) was found in 6 (17.6%) children. Left ventricular inner dimension at end diastole (LVEDd) Z-score correlated negatively with neutrophils (r = −0.583, p = 0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (r = −0.562, p = 0.002), and positively with monocyte-to-neutrophil ratio (MNR) (r = 0.605, p = 0.001) and left ventricular mass (LVM) for lean body mass Z-score, while LVMI [g/m2] correlated positively with MNR (r = 0.495, p = 0.005 and r = 0.433, p = 0.011). RWT correlated positively with neutrophil count (r = 0.356, p = 0.039 and r = 0.347 p = 0.044) and with monocyte count (r = 0.378, p = 0.027 and r = 0.365, p = 0.034). Patients with LVH had significantly lower NLR (1.430 ± 0.409 vs. 1.797 ± 0.521, p = 0.043) and higher MNR ratios (0.171 ± 0.031 vs. 0.144 ± 0.037, p = 0.042). The receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrated good diagnostic profiles for mean platelet volume (MPV), NLR, and MNR as predictors of LVH. In multivariate analysis, MNR was the only significant predictor of LVH (OR: 1.329, 95CI: 1.007–1.756). Conclusions: Monocyte-to-neutrophil ratio may be an easily accessible marker of left ventricular hypertrophy in children with primary hypertension.