Association of neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio with sepsis in infant

Objective Neutrophils and albumin are established inflammatory biomarkers closely linked to the risk of sepsis. Previous research has indicated that an elevated neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio (NPAR) is correlated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality in critically ill patients with severe sepsis or septic shock. However, its application in infants remains underexplored. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the association between NPAR and infant sepsis.Methods In this study, 320 infants with suspected sepsis were enrolled. Of these, 215 were ultimately diagnosed with sepsis and categorized into the sepsis group, while the remaining 105 infants were placed in the control group. Clinical and laboratory data were comprehensively collected from electronic health records. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to identify potential independent risk factors for sepsis in infants. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 26.0.Results Compared to the control group, infants in the sepsis group exhibited higher NPAR levels (p < 0.05). The infants were then divided into three groups based on NPAR tertiles. The analysis demonstrated that the overall incidence of sepsis increased from 57.5% in the first group (NPAR < 1.30) to 76.2% in the third group (NPAR > 1.81). Furthermore, correlation analysis revealed a positive association between NPAR and markers of infection and inflammation, such as C-reactive protein and procalcitonin. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified NPAR as an independent risk factor for sepsis in infants, with an odds ratio of 1.554 (95% CI: 1.058–2.283, p < 0.05).Conclusion NPAR is positively and independently associated with the presence of infant sepsis.