ApoE gene polymorphism and vascular dementia in Chinese population: a meta-analysis

Vascular dementia is the second common cause of dementia, only second to Alzheimer's disease in later life. The Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) gene polymorphism as a risk factor in vascular dementia has been suggested, but direct evidence from genetic association studies remains inconclusive even in Chinese population. Therefore, we performed this meta-analysis in order to evaluate the relationship between ApoE gene polymorphism and susceptibility to vascular dementia in Chinese population by pooling data from all relevant case-control studies published domestically and abroad from January 1990 to May 2011. 18 case-control studies were selected. Meta-analysis results showed that the pooled OR value of vascular dementia subjects in Chinese population with ε4 allele carriers was 2.07 [95% CI (1.69, 2.53)], and the pooled OR value of vascular dementia subjects with E4/E4 genotype was 3.34 [95% CI (1.89, 5.88)]. These results suggest that ApoE polymorphism is significantly associated with susceptibility to vascular dementia in Chinese population. The subject with at least one ε4 allele or E4/E4 genotype has higher risk suffering from vascular dementia than others.