A retrospective review was conducted on patients from 6 months to 6 years old presenting with first febrile seizure admitted to a tertiary care hospital. Epidemiological and laboratory variables of the patients were collected.
The mean NLR in the simple FS and complex FS groups was 2.18±1.9 and 3.8±4.2 respectively, and the difference was significant (p=0.024). The mean serum red blood cell distribution width in the simple FS and complex FS groups was 16.1±1.1 and 16.6±0.8 respectively, and the difference was significant (p=0.019). NLR and RDW values in complex FS patients were statistically higher than simple febrile patients. ROC analysis showed that if the chosen cut-off point for NLR is 1.98 the sensitivity and specificity are 66.7% and 60.3% respectively. These were statistically significant (p=0.040 AUC 0.623, CI 0.503-0.743). If the chosen cut-off point for RDW is 16.350, the sensitivity and specificity are 59.0% and 58.6%, respectively. These were statistically significant (p=0.037 AUC 0.626, CI 0.515-0.736) too.
NLR and RDW were simple, effective and practical predictors for differentiation of FS types. They will have potential values in public health practice for management of FS patients.