Figure 1.
Detailed distribution of diagnostic subcategories by disease type
| Etiology of elevated ESR | n, % |
|---|---|
| Malignancies | 139 (31.5) |
| Gastrointestinal cancers | 27 (6.1) |
| Colon | 15 (3.4) |
| Gastric | 9 (2.0) |
| Pancreas | 3 (0.7) |
| Hematologic cancers | 50 (11.3) |
| Multiple myeloma | 19 (4.3) |
| Leukemias | 14 (3.2) |
| Myelodysplastic syndrome | 12 (2.7) |
| Lymphomas | 5 (1.1) |
| Urologic cancers | 18 (4.1) |
| Bladder | 7 (1.6) |
| Prostate | 6 (1.4) |
| Renal cell carcinoma | 5 (1.1) |
| Gynecologic cancers | 15 (3.4) |
| Breast | 6 (1.4) |
| Cervix | 5 (1.1) |
| Ovary | 4 (0.9) |
| Respiratory cancers | 16 (3.7) |
| Lung | 13 (3) |
| Larynx | 3 (0.7) |
| Other cancer types | 13 (3) |
| Infectious diseases | 150 (34) |
| Pneumonia | 60 (13.6) |
| Urinary tract infection | 35 (7.9) |
| Diabetic foot infection | 12 (2.7) |
| Sepsis | 10 (2.3) |
| Osteomyelitis | 5 (1.1) |
| Other infections | 28 (6.4) |
| Rheumatologic diseases | 17 (3.9) |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | 11 (2.5) |
| Polymyalgia rheumatica | 3 (0.7) |
| Adult-onset Still’s disease | 2 (0.5) |
| Systemic lupus erythematosus | 1 (0.2) |
| Renal diseases | 43 (9.8) |
| Chronic kidney disease | 22 (5) |
| Acute kidney injury | 12 (2.7) |
| Glomerulonephritis | 6 (1.4) |
| Nephrotic syndrome | 3 (0.7) |
| Other causes | 22 (5) |
| Heart failure | 13 (3) |
| Liver cirrhosis | 4 (0.9) |
| Autoimmune thyroiditis | 3 (0.7) |
| Crohn disease | 2 (0.4) |
| Undiagnosed | 70 (15.9) |
Demographic, comorbidity, and laboratory characteristics of patients based on mortality and survival status
| Variables | Exitus (n=284) | Survivor (n=157) | Total (N=441) | Effect size (95% CI) | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 78 (27–100) | 68 (20–92) | 75 (20–100) | 0.274 [0.860–0.359] | <0.001 | |
| Age | ≥65 | 227 (70.9) | 93 (29.1) | 320 (100) | 0.222 [0.117–0.319] | <0.001 |
| Gender | Male | 141 (67.5) | 68 (32.5) | 209 (100) | 0.061 [0.003–0.151] | 0.232 |
| Comorbidities | ||||||
| Diabetes mellitus | 104 (58.8) | 73 (41.2) | 177 (100) | 0.096 [0.011–0.191] | 0.043 | |
| Hypertension | 141 (62.7) | 84 (37.3) | 225 (100) | 0.037 [0.002–0.132] | 0.438 | |
| CKD | 63 (68.5) | 29 (31.5) | 92 (100) | 0.044 [0.003–0.130] | 0.358 | |
| HF | 41 (78.8) | 11 (21.2) | 52 (100) | 0.110 [0.026–0.190] | 0.021 | |
| CAD | 70 (70.7) | 29 (29.3) | 99 (100) | 0.071 [0.005–0.155] | 0.155 | |
| COPD | 30 (73.2) | 11 (26.8) | 41 (100) | 0.059 [0.003–0.145] | 0.218 | |
| Malignancy | 76 (88.4) | 10 (11.6) | 86 (100) | 0.246 [0.176–0.319] | <0.001 | |
| Cerebrovascular | 34 (72.3) | 13 (27.7) | 47 (100) | 0.057 [0.002–0.143] | 0.229 | |
| Laboratory results | ||||||
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 8.86±1.97 | 9.68±2.23 | 9.14±2.1 | 0.390 [0.190–0.590] | <0.001 | |
| MCV (fL) | 85.35±9.43 | 85.8±9.97 | 85.49±9.59 | 0.046 [−0.102–0.194] | 0.638 | |
| CRP (mg/dL) | 12.54±9.09 | 13.91±12.76 | 13.08±10.55 | 0.142 [−0.006–0.290] | 0.242 | |
| Ferritin (ng/ml) | 447.5 (4.8–4000) | 283 (2–13980) | 402 (2–40) | 0.145 [0.048–0.238] | 0.002 | |
| Leucocytes (/mm6) | 10 (0.2–102) | 10.6 (0.5–80.2) | 10.3 (0.2–102) | 0.091 [−0.003-0.183] | 0.056 | |
| Neutrophils (/mm6) | 7.3 (0-37) | 7.9 (0-35) | 7.5 (0-37) | 0.093 [−0.001–0.185] | 0.053 | |
| LYM (/mm6) | 1.2 (0–87) | 1.4 (0–74.7) | 1.2 (0–87.3) | 0.110 [0.017–0.202] | 0.021 | |
| NLR | 5.5 (0.02–90) | 5.83(0.01–116) | 5.7 (0.01–116) | 0.018 [−0.076–0.112] | 0.707 | |
| PLT (/mm6) | 253 (2.2–1004) | 283 (16.8–764) | 263 (2.2–1004) | 0.086 [−0.008–0.178] | 0.093 | |
Etiology-based comparison of demographic, laboratory, and clinical characteristics
| Variable | Infectious diseases (n=150) | Malignancies (n=139) | Other causes (n=22) | Renal diseases (n=43) | Undiagnosed (n=70) | Rheumatologic (n=17) | Effect size (95% CI) | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male (n=209) | 67 (32.1) | 78 (37.3) | 9 (4.3) | 19 (9.1) | 29 (13.9) | 7 (3.3) | 0.121 [0.079–0.243] | 0.261 |
| Female (n=232) | 83 (35.8) | 61 (26.3) | 13 (5.6) | 24 (10.3) | 41 (17.7) | 10 (4.3) | ||
| Age <65 (n=121) | 34 (28.1) | 41 (33.9) | 8 (6.6) | 9 (7.4) | 21 (17.4) | 8 (6.6) | 0.129 [0.078–0.252] | 0.198 |
| ≥65 (n=320) | 116 (36.3) | 98 (30.6) | 14 (4.4) | 34 (10.6) | 49 (15.3) | 9 (2.8) | ||
| ESR 100-120 (n=365) | 130 (35.6) | 109 (29.9) | 18 (4.9) | 34 (9.3) | 60 (16.4) | 14 (3.8) | 0.099 [0.073–0.227] | 0.507 |
| ESR>120 (n=76) | 20 (26.3) | 30 (39.5) | 4 (5.3) | 9 (11.8) | 10 (13.2) | 3 (3.9) | ||
| Exitus (n=284) | 91 (60.7) | 113 (81.3) | 13 (59.1) | 27 (62.8) | 33 (47.1) | 7 (41.2) | 0.268 [0.201–0.375] | <0.001 |
| Alive (n=157) | 59 (39.3) | 26 (18.7) | 9 (40.9) | 16 (37.2) | 37 (52.9) | 10 (58.8) | ||
| Ferritin (ng/mL) | 398.5 (32–40000) | 611 (4.8–9155) | 201 (7.8–40000) | 352 (45–3595) | 184.5 (2–11835) | 422 99–13980 | 0.020 [0.001–0.038] | <0.001 |
| Hemoglobin (mg/dL) | 9.8 (5.2–15.5) | 8.6 (4.3–15.8) | 9.9 (7.4–13) | 9.2 (5–13.5) | 7.25 (3.7–13.2) | 9.9 (6–12.1) | 0.184 [0.133–0.235] | <0.001 |
| MCV (fL) | 86 (62–112) | 86 (19–106) | 89 (58–96) | 87 (72–109) | 81.5 (61–124) | 85 (76–102) | 0.012 [0–0.026] | 0.037 |
| Leukocytes (/mm6) | 11.5 (0.4–93.6) | 9.2 (0.2–102) | 10.1 (4.4–31.9) | 10.9 (3.8–28.1) | 9 (0.3–20.5) | 7.8 (0.3–26) | 0.018 [0.001–0.035] | 0.001 |
| Neutrophils (/mm6) | 9.3 (0.01–32.7) | 6.2 (0–37) | 8.4 (2–25) | 8.7 (2.8–23.4) | 6.5 (0.1–19.4) | 6.1 (0.2–24) | 0.054 [0.024–0.084] | <0.001 |
| Lymphocytes (/mm6) | 1.2 (0.2–87.3) | 1.1 (0–74.7) | 1.3 (0.4–4.9) | 1.2 (0.5–4.2) | 1.6 (0.1–4) | 1.2 (0.2–2.6) | 0.003 [0.001–0.011] | 0.146 |
| NLR | 7.5 (0.03–90) | 4.5 (0.01–116) | 5.9 (1–39) | 6.2 (1.4–39.8) | 3.7 (0.03–48.5) | 5.1 (0.9–23) | 0.024 [0.004–0.045] | <0.001 |
| Thrombocytes (/mm6) | 260 (20.4–818) | 231 (2.2–100.4) | 252 (81.5–764) | 286 (45–635) | 319 (3.2–880) | 269 (9–548) | 0.025 [0.004–0.046] | 0.038 |
| CRP (mg/dL) | 14 (0.3–45) | 10.7 (0.1–42) | 9.2 (0–35) | 8.6 (0.2–96) | 6 (0 –32) | 13 (4.7–38) | 0.057 [0.026–0.087] | <0.001 |