Association of the Monocyte-to-High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Ratio with Gastrointestinal Involvement of Immunoglobulin a Vasculitis

Objective: To illustrate the association of monocyte to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (MHR) and other serum indicators with the pathogenesis and prognosis of immunoglobulin A vasculitis (IgAV) patients in different subgroups.

Methods: A total of 158 adult patients and 113 healthy controls were enrolled, and the clinical presentation and laboratory indexes were comprehensively assessed.

Results: IgAV patients show significantly elevated levels of inflammatory parameters and lipid profiles compared to healthy controls (P < 0.05). Higher levels of the MHR and other normal inflammatory indicators were found in patients with Gastrointestinal (GI) involvement compared to other subgroups. And in group with GI involvement, significantly higher white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, complement 4 (C4), NLR (neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio) and PLR (platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio) levels and lower levels of apolipoprotein-a (Apo-a) were observed. Their correlation analysis demonstrated positive results between MHR level and white blood cell (WBC) count (r = 0.416, P = 0.034), D-Dimer (r = 0.464, P = 0.026) and monocyte (r = 0.947, P < 0.001). And the time until first remission of skin purpura was shown positively correlated with their age (r = 0.456, P = 0.043), C-reactive protein (CRP) level (r = 0.641, P = 0.018), D-Dimer level (r = 0.502, P = 0.040) while negatively correlated with albumin (Alb) level (r=-0.626, P = 0.003) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) level (r=-0.478, P = 0.033).

Conclusion: Our study suggests that those biomarkers represented for inflammatory responses, lipid profile and immunological functions have significant differences in the subgroups of adult IgAV patients. In addition, we also found that MHR level may serve as a potential biomarker for the pathogenesis and prognosis of IgAV patients with GI involvement.