The effect of blood urea nitrogen/creatinine and blood urea nitrogen/albumin ratios on the prognosis and mortality of patients in the palliative care service

Introduction
In this study we aimed to evaluate the effects of the blood urea nitrogen/creatinine ratio (BUN/BCR) and the BUN/albumin ratio (BAR) on the prognosis and mortality in patients in the palliative care service.

Material and methods
Patients in the palliative service were included in the study. Sociodemographic data of the patients such as age, gender, chronic diseases, discharge from the service, length of stay in the service, BUN, creatinine, albumin, C-reactive protein (CRP), and haemogram parameters were recorded retrospectively from patient files and the hospital automation system. BCR and BAR values were calculated.

Results
A total of 209 patients were included in the study. 57.4% of them were male, and 44.9% were ≥ 81 years of age. While 78.0% of the patients were discharged alive, 22.0% of them died. When the blood test results of the patients who were discharged from the palliative service alive and those who died were compared, it was seen that the CRP, BUN, BCR, and BAR levels were high, and the albumin levels were low in the patients who died. A positive correlation was observed between BCR and BAR levels in patients in the palliative service. It was observed that as BAR and BCR levels increased, the length of stay in the service, BUN, creatinine, and CRP levels increased, while albumin levels decreased.

Conclusions
In our study, a positive correlation was found between BCR and BAR parameters, hospitalization time, and mortality status of patients in the palliative service with various systemic diseases. In this case, it can be said that the BCR and BAR ratios have value in predicting the outcomes and mortality in patients.