Vnitr Lek 2026, 72(1):E15-E21 | DOI: 10.36290/vnl.2026.012

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio as a marker of increased cardiovascular risk in patients with moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa: prospective observational study

Tereza Neplechová¹, Zlatica Žingorová¹, Tomáš Bolek², Matej Samoš², Martin Jozef Péč², Denis Hrivnák³, Karolína Vorčáková¹

¹ Dermatovenerologická klinika, Jesseniova lekárska fakulta v Martine Univerzity Komenského v Bratislave

² 1. interná klinika, Jesseniova lekárska fakulta v Martine Univerzity Komenského v Bratislav

³ Klinika stomatológie a maxilofaciálnej chirurgie, Jesseniova lekárska fakulta v Martine Univerzity Komenského v Bratislave, Univerzitná nemocnica Martin

Aim: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a pro-inflammatory condition associated with other comorbidities, such as obesity and an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) disease. One of the prognostic markers of CV risk is the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), which is an inflammatory marker and a strong prognostic indicator for patients suffering from various diseases. The aim of this study was to confirm the increased cardiovascular risk in patients with moderate to severe HS based on an elevated NLR compared to a control group of healthy individuals.

Materials and methods: In this study, we prospectively monitored laboratory parameters in 51 patients with moderate to severe HS, whose disease severity was determined using the IHS4 scoring system. We compared the group with a control group of 51 healthy individuals. Peripheral venous blood was collected from all patients in both groups, and the NLR was determined from the absolute values of neutrophils and lymphocytes in the blood count. These results were then compared between the group of patients with HS and the control group of healthy individuals using a paired t-test, with a statistical significance threshold (α) set at 0,05.

Results: In descriptive statistics, the average number of neutrophils, lymphocytes, and NLR was higher in the examined group of patients with HS than in the control group of healthy individuals. Using a paired t-test, we demonstrated statistically significantly higher values for the averages of individual hematological markers monitored.

Conclusion: The results of the study show that patients with HS have higher NLR values than healthy individuals, which may be associated with an increased risk of CV and other complications. Our results highlight the presence of systemic inflammation in individuals with HS and suggest that these markers of inflammation may be valuable in clinical practice for screening and monitoring the progression of HS.

Keywords: hidradenitis suppurativa, systemic inflammation, cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular disease, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, inflammatory marker.

Accepted: February 5, 2026; Published: February 12, 2026  Show citation