Complete blood cell count indexes in non‐arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy

Purpose: To investigate the role of some blood count‐derived inflammation biomarkers in non‐arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION). Methods: 37 newly diagnosed NAION patients and 37 sex‐ and age‐matched subjects without NAION were recruited between January 2017 and December 2018. A blood sample was taken and complete blood cell count was performed. The following blood cell count‐derived indexes were evaluated: neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), derived NLR [dNLR = neutrophils/(white blood cells‐neutrophils)], platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR). Results: NAION patients had significantly higher median values of mean platelet volume (MPV; p = 0.01), red cell distribution width (RDW; p = 0.015), NLR (p = 0.03), and dNLR (p = 0.01). There were no significant differences in white blood cells, lymphocytes, neutrophils, and PLR. Conclusion: Results suggest that MPV, RDW, NLR and dNLR may be disease biomarkers in NAION. Larger scale studies are necessary to confirm these findings.