Leucocyte differential count and morphometric parameters by Mindray BC-6800 Plus: a possible predictive tool for screening of sepsis,Conta differenziale leucocitaria e parametri morfometrici determinati con Mindray BC-6800 Plus: un possibile strumento predittivo per lo screening di sepsi

Background: sepsis is a serious disease with high mortality rate, threatening human health. Clinicians need to diagnose the condition in time to develop an effective treatment plan; therefore, a quick and early screening to rule in or rule out sepsis has become an urgent problem in clinical laboratories. Different markers are used to diagnose sepsis, but they have limitations and require additional examination. The aim of this study is to use leucocyte count and other haematological parameters obtained by Mindray BC-6800-plus, to identify sepsis biomarkers that are early, quickly, conveniently, and at low cost. Methods: a total of 479 venous whole blood samples were collected: 63 control samples (blood donors), and 416 samples hospitalized at the emergency department with symptoms attributable to sepsis with a procalcitonin request. Morphometric parameters are reported using Mindray BC-6800 plus analyzer: white blood cell count-related parameters like cell population data named X, Y, Z, neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, and index of immature granulocytes. Statistical analysis was performed using the Kruskal-Wallis test to evaluate significative differences among the groups. ROC curves were also examined to extrapolate a cut-off of pathogenicity. Results: we found a significant statistically difference between the control and the sepsis groups for a number of haematological parameters. The ROC curves highlight acceptable sensitivity and specificity values for some parameters, and suggest possible cut-offs. Discussion: some qualitative and quantitative parameters of total count blood can be of help with the screening of sepsis upon admission to the emergency department.