VEGF Polymorphisms do not contribute to the risk of congenital heart defect

Objective: To clarify the role of VEGF polymorphisms in CHD, we performed a meta-analysis to determine the association between these three variants and risk of CHD. Methods: Our meta-analysis included a total of 6, 4, and 6 research articles for each of the C2578A, G1154A, and G634C polymorphisms, respectively. Data extraction and study quality assessment were performed in duplicate. Summary odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of allele contrast and genotype contrast were estimated using either a fixed or random effects model. The Q-statistic test was used to identify heterogeneity and a funnel plot was adopted to evaluate publication bias. Results: Six articles containing 1080 cases and 2289 controls were relevant to C2578A, 4 researches containing 528 cases and 1036 controls were relevant to G1154A, and 6 articles containing 1081 cases and 2281 controls were relevant to G634C. The results of overall meta-analysis showed that none of the VEGF C2578A, G1154A, G634C increased the susceptibility of CHD. In summary, this meta-analysis demonstrates that the three analyzed VEGF polymorphisms do not increase the risk of CHD. Conclusions: Our meta-analysis suggests that the common VEGF polymorphisms C2578A, G1154A, and G634C do not alter CHD risk.