ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Immunol.

Sec. Autoimmune and Autoinflammatory Disorders: Autoinflammatory Disorders

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1585451

Neutrophil-Lymphocyte and Platelet-Lymphocyte Ratios as Systemic Inflammatory Biomarkers for Atopic Dermatitis in US Adults: A Cross-Sectional NHANES Study Revealing

Provisionally accepted
  • 1Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, China
  • 2Department of Dermatology, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China
  • 3Shanxi Aier Eye Hospital, Taiyuan, China
  • 4First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shaanxi, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Background: Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) are systemic inflammation markers, but their association with adult atopic dermatitis (AD) remains underexplored.Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed 2001–2006 NHANES data from 10,890 US adults. AD was defined by self-reported physician diagnosis. Cutoffs for NLR (1.81×10⁹/L) and PLR (136.13×10⁹/L) were determined via ROC analysis. Multivariable models adjusted for sociodemographic and clinical covariates.Results: Elevated NLR (≥1.81×10⁹/L) and PLR (≥136.13×10⁹/L) were independently associated with higher AD prevalence after full adjustment (NLR: OR=1.23, 95%CI:1.08–1.40; PLR: OR=1.24, 95%CI:1.10–1.41). Subgroup analyses revealed stronger associations in males, normal-BMI individuals, and asthmatics (PLR: OR=1.84), but inverse correlations in nonsmokers (NLR: OR=0.33; PLR: OR=0.34). Significant interactions occurred with BMI and asthma (PLR-interaction P=0.0077). Conclusions: NLR and PLR are accessible systemic inflammatory biomarkers for AD, with subgroup heterogeneity suggesting roles for lymphocyte depletion (skin homing), neutrophilic (Th17), and platelet-mediated (Th2) inflammation pathways.

Keywords: atopic dermatitis, NHANES, Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, plateletto-lymphocyte ratio, systemic inflammation, biomarker

Received: 28 Feb 2025; Accepted: 03 Jun 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Chen, yang and Guo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Shuping Guo, Department of Dermatology, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.