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Licensed Unlicensed Requires Authentication Published by De Gruyter November 24, 2018

Circulating platelet-neutrophil aggregates as risk factor for deep venous thrombosis

Jingyi Zhou, Erwen Xu, Kang Shao, Wenyan Shen, Yi Gu, Min Li and Wei Shen

Abstract

Background

Platelet-neutrophil aggregates (PNAs) are fundamental mechanisms linking hemostasis and inflammatory processes. Elevated level of PNAs have been reported in inflammatory diseases and coronary artery diseases. However, studies on the correlation between PNAs formation and deep venous thrombosis (DVT) are not available.

Methods

A total of 92 participants were involved in this study, including 32 cases with DVT and 60 cases without DVT. Blood samples coagulated by K2-EDTA or sodium citrate were prepared for blood cell count and blood smears. PNAs and platelet activation were measured using flow cytometry. The correlation between platelet activation level and PNAs level was analyzed by linear regression. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed, assessing the prognostic performance of PNAs to predict potential risk of DVT occurrence.

Results

PNAs was found in the blood smears of patients with DVT. Significant increased level of PNAs was identified in DVT group (medium 8.43%, interquartile range [IQR] 4.11%–15.69%), compared with that in control group (5.16%, IQR 2.40–9.60, p<0.01). The DVT group also showed a dramatic elevated level of total platelet activation (medium 16.06%, IQR 6.04–22.05) vs. control group (11.26%, IQR 5.54–19.99, p<0.05). The PNAs level was correlated with total platelet activation (r2=0.58, p<0.0001). A significantly high odds ratio (OR) of DVT occurrence was identified when the level of PNAs was higher than 7.4% (OR 3.60, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.463–8.838, p<0.01).

Conclusions

An elevated level of PNAs was associated with risk of DVT occurrence, which might be a suitable marker predicting DVT development.

  1. Author contributions: All the authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this submitted manuscript and approved submission.

  2. Research funding: This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China Youth Project (Funder Id: 10.13039/501100001809, 81601822 and 81702069).

  3. Employment or leadership: None declared.

  4. Honorarium: None declared.

  5. Competing interests: The funding organization(s) played no role in the study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; or in the decision to submit the report for publication.

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Received: 2018-08-22
Accepted: 2018-10-28
Published Online: 2018-11-24
Published in Print: 2019-04-24

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