Introduction:
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a progressive decline in memory and cognitive abilities. The monocyte/HDL-C ratio (MHR) has emerged as a new marker of inflammation in recent years. The purpose of this research was to examine MHR alterations in AD and to assess its feasibility as a straightforward and easily computable biomarker for evaluating the severity of the disease.

Material and methods:
A retrospective case-control study was conducted with 101 patients with AD and 81 age and sex-matched controls from the hospital records. AD was diagnosed according to the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke/Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association (NINCDS-ADRDA) criteria. The hospital’s electronic patient record data between September 2021 and April 2022 were screened.

Results:
Individuals diagnosed as having AD were classified into three subgroups based on the progression of the disease, mild, moderate, and severe. MHR was higher in the moderate and severe dementia subgroups compared with the controls according to subgroup analysis (P=0.013). An increase in MHR was found in patients with AD. The multivariate logistic regression analysis model revealed that a one-unit increase in MHR resulted in a 1.081 times increase in the risk of AD (OR: 1.081, 95% CI: [1.005-1.162]; P= 0.035).

Conclusions:
High MHR values could not be used as a diagnostic test for AD. Instead, because it negatively correlates with MMSE, it could be a good index reflecting the increased AD risk and disease severity.