The association of preprocedural C-reactive protein/albumin ratio with in-stent restenosis in patients undergoing iliac artery stenting

In-stent restenosis (ISR) still constitutes a major problem after percutaneous vascular interventions and the inflammation has a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of such event. The C-reactive protein/albumin ratio (CAR) is a newly identified inflammatory biomarker, and it may be used as an indicator to predict ISR in subjects with coronary artery stenting. In light of these data, our main objective was to investigate the relationship between the preprocedural CAR and ISR in patients undergoing successful iliac artery stent implantation.

In total, 138 consecutive patients who had successful iliac artery stent implantation in a tertiary heart center between 2015 and 2018 were enrolled in the study. The study population was categorized into two groups; patients with ISR and those without ISR during follow-up. The CAR was determined by dividing CRP by serum albumin.

In the multivariable regression analysis; the CAR (HR: 2.66, 95% CI: 1.66-4.25, P<0.01), stent length (HR: 1.01, 95% CI: 0.99-1.02, P=0.04), and HbA1c levels (HR: 1.22, 95% CI: 0.99-1.51, P=0.04) were independently related with ISR. A receiver operating curve analysis displayed that the CAR value of >0.29 predicted ISR with sensitivity of 97.5% and specificity of 88.8% (AUC 0.94, P<0.01).

Our findings provide evidence that the CAR may be an applicable inflammatory biomarker in predicting ISR in subjects undergoing iliac artery stenting for the treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD). Also, the stent length and poor glycemic control were found to be associated with ISR.