Predictive ability of LRINEC score in the prediction of limb loss and mortality in diabetic foot infection

•Diabetic foot infections (DFIs) are serious soft tissue infections that are also accompanied by varying degrees of necrosis, which is neglected in severity assessment tools.•The Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis (LRINEC) score is a scoring system that includes standardized laboratory parameters developed to predict necrotizing tissue infections.•LRINEC score may be a promising scoring system in predicting amputation and mortality in DFI. It was aimed to analyze the effectiveness of the Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis (LRINEC) score in predicting amputation and mortality in diabetic foot infection (DFI). Data of 416 patients who were hospitalized for DFI were recorded retrospectively. LRINEC scores were calculated for each patient from laboratory data. The diagnostic performance of LRINEC score was investigated in amputated/nonamputated and survived/deceased patient groups. Median LRINEC score of patients who underwent amputation was higher than those without amputation (P < 0.001). The area under the curve (AUC) value for LRINEC score was 0.638 with the cut-off point of ≥5 in predicting amputation. Median LRINEC score of deceased patients was higher than those who survived (P= 0.022). AUC value for LRINEC score was 0.663 with the cut-off point of ≥7 in predicting mortality. LRINEC score may be a promising scoring system in predicting both amputation and mortality in DFI.