Mean Platelet Volume/Platelet Count Ratio as a Diagnostic Marker in Children with Acute Appendicitis

Objective: The objective of this research was to evaluate the diagnostic value of mean platelet volume/platelet count (MPV/PC) ratio in pediatric acute appendicitis. Methods: This retrospective study included a total of 310 patients, 176 in the uncomplicated appendicitis group, 80 in the complicated appendicitis group, and 54 in the nonspecific abdominal pain (NSAP) group. C-reactive protein (CRP) level, white blood cell (WBC) count, absolute neutrophil count (ANC), MPV, PC, and MPV/PC ratio were compared between the groups. Results: WBC and ANC levels differed significantly between the groups (P<0.001 in all pairwise comparisons). CRP levels in the complicated appendicitis group were higher than in the NSAP and uncomplicated appendicitis groups (P<0.001 for both comparisons). There was a negative correlation between MPV and PC (r=-0.434, P<0.001). Both PC and MPV/PC ratio were able to distinguish cases of complicated appendicitis from NSAP (P=0.047 and P=0.045, respectively) and from cases of uncomplicated appendicitis (P=0.010 and P=0.045, respectively). Areas under the ROC curve for CRP, WBC, ANC, MPV, PC, and MPV/PC ratio were 0.640, 0.690, 0.727, 0.553, 0.541, and 0.546, respectively. Conclusion: According to the results of our study, MPV/PC ratio can be used in addition to the conventional markers to discriminate cases of complicated appendicitis.