Objective: It is not yet known whether systemic inflammatory indices affect the development of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants. We aimed to evaluate the relationship between systemic inflammatory indices obtained on the first day of life and the development of RDS in premature infants.
Study Design: Premature infants with gestational age of ≤32 weeks were included in the study. Six systemic inflammatory indices involving neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), pan-immune-inflammation value (PIV), and systemic inflammation response index (SIRI) were measured in the first 1 hours after birth and compared in premature infants with and without RDS.
Results: A total of 931 premature infants, 579 infants in the RDS group and 352 infants in the non-RDS group, were included in the study. MLR, PLR, and SIRI values were similar between groups (p>0.05 for all parameters). NLR, PIV, and SII values in the RDS group were significantly higher than in the non-RDS group (p=0.005, p=0.011, and p<0.001, respectively). In the predictivity of RDS, the AUC value of SII was 0.842 and the cut-off value was ≥78.200. Multiple logistic analysis showed that a higher level of SII (≥78.2) was independently associated with RDS (OR 3.03, 95% CI 1.761-5.301).
Conclusion: Our results demostrated that a higher SII level (≥78.2) may be a predictor for the development of RDS in premature infants with gestational age of ≤32 weeks.