Associations of β-Fibrinogen Polymorphisms with the Risk of Ischemic Stroke: A Meta-analysis

Background: Recently, the roles of beta-fibrinogen (FG beta) polymorphisms in ischemic stroke (IS) were intensively analyzed, but the results of these studies were inconsistent. Thus, we performed this study to better assess potential relationship between FG beta polymorphisms and the risk of IS. Methods: Eligible studies were searched in PubMed, Medline, Embase, and CNKI. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate correlations between FG beta polymorphisms and IS. Results: A total of 49 studies were included for analyses. Significant associations with the risk of IS were detected for FG beta -148 C/T and -455 G/A polymorphisms in overall analyses. Further subgroup analyses according to ethnicities of participants revealed that the -148 C/T polymorphism was significantly correlated with the risk of IS in both Asians and Caucasians, while the -455 G/A polymorphism was only significantly correlated with the risk of IS in Asians. When we stratified available data according to types of disease, we found that both FG beta -148 C/T and -455 G/A polymorphisms were significantly correlated with the risk of cerebral infarction. Conclusions: Our findings indicated that FG beta -148 C/T and -455 G/A polymorphisms may serve as potential biological markers for IS in Asians. Moreover, the FG beta -148 C/T polymorphism may also serve as a potential biological marker for IS in Caucasians.