Serum Lactate-Albumin Ratio: Soothsayer for Outcome in Sepsis

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of the serum lactate/albumin (L/A) ratio as a prognostic marker of sepsis syndrome.Materials and methods: This study was conducted in the Internal Medicine Department at Acharya Vinoba Bhave Rural Hospital with a sample size of 160 cases of sepsis. The serum L/A ratio was calculated on admission and correlated with deaths and morbidity. Statistical analysis was significant if the P-value was less than 0.05.Results: The mean age of patients was 52.83 ± 16.80 years with a male predominance (64.4% vs. 35.6%). The mean L/A ratio was 0.95 ± 0.46. The proportion of discharged subjects and mortality were 58.8% and 41.2%, respectively. The study found that a higher mean L/A ratio (1.1-1.44) was significantly linked to the various variables in the study. Furthermore, a significantly higher median L/A ratio of 1.23 was found in subjects with vasopressor use. The median L/A ratio in the Discharge group and Death group was 0.64 and 1.27, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve indicated that accurate diagnostic performance was 0.976 in predicting Death versus Discharge for the L/A ratio.Conclusion: This study found that, compared to lactate and albumin alone, the predictor value of the L/A ratio was outstanding in predicting death and hospital stay (discharge) among sepsis participants, with a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 88%.

Evaluating the predictive value of initial lactate/albumin ratios in determining prognosis of sepsis patients

“…Although Li et al incorporated additional variables, notably interleukin-6, and achieved a slightly higher AUC, our study offered a focused analysis solely on early serum markers, asserting the paramount importance of L/A in predicting 28-day sepsis outcomes. Similarly, Kabra et al [ 19 ] reported high specificity and sensitivity for L/A, which is consistent with our findings. However, our study provides a comprehensive evaluation, leveraging a larger sample size and a broader time frame, ensuring more robust and generalizable conclusions regarding the predictive capacity of the L/A ratio in sepsis prognosis.…”

Hierarchical Capability in Distinguishing Severities of Sepsis via Serum Lactate: A Network Meta-Analysis

“…Additionally, a model incorporating more variables may offer improved predictive capability compared to a single lactate variable. Recently, a study suggested that compared to lactate and albumin alone, the predictor value of the lactate and albumin ratio was outstanding in predicting death and hospital stay (discharge) among sepsis participants, with a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 88% [147]. As most of the included studies are observational, they cannot infer causation.…”