title: Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in Behçet's disease as a marker of disease activity.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Behçet's disease (BD) is a rare autoimmune disease. The neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is used as a marker of inflammation in several diseases nowadays. This study investigated the NLR as an inflammation marker in BD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-five patients diagnosed with BD and 100 healthy subjects were enrolled in this study retrospectively. The white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, and lymphocyte counts were recorded, and the NLR was calculated from these parameters.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The NLR and the CRP and WBC levels were higher in patients with BD than controls (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, and p = 0.026, respectively). In addition, the NLR was higher in patients with active BD than in those with inactive BD (p = 0.033).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results demonstrate that the NLR is higher in patients with active BD compared to controls and those with inactive BD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Mustafa Kemal University School of Medicine, Hatay, Turkey. Corresponding author: eminenurrifai@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Emine Nur
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Rifaioglu
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Mustafa Kemal University School of Medicine, Hatay, Turkey.
authors.forename: Bilge
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bülbül Şen
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Mustafa Kemal University School of Medicine, Hatay, Turkey.
authors.forename: Özlem
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Ekiz
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Mustafa Kemal University School of Medicine, Hatay, Turkey.
authors.forename: Asena
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cigdem Dogramaci
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001528:Behcet Syndrome / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009504:Neutrophils; D012189:Retrospective Studies