Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio may be a helpful marker to evaluate disease activity in NMOSD

Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) was introduced to assess the activity in autoimmune diseases. Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) has been defined as a chronic inflammatory disease with a course of relapse-remission. Therefore, the relationship between NLR and NMOSD was assessed in this article. Data of NMOSD patients was extracted. NLR is calculated as the absolute count of neutrophil divided by the absolute count of lymphocytes. Correlations between NLR and characteristics of NMOSD patients were evaluated. Effect of treatments on NLR was also analyzed. Increased level of NLR was observed in patients with NMOSD compared healthy individuals ( p