A Mendelian randomization study of the causal relationship between dietary factors and venous thromboembolism

The relationship between venous thromboembolism (VTE) and various dietary factors has recently attracted much attention. This was a Mendelian randomization (MR) study. Genome-wide association study data on diet (ukb-b-2209, ukb-b-3881, and ukb-b-8006) and VTE (finn-b-I9_VTE) were obtained from the UK Biobank and FinnGen. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) significantly associated with diet and VTE were selected as instrumental variables. Five regression models (MR-Egger regression, inverse-variance weighted, weight median estimator, weighted model, and simple model) were used to verify the causal relationship between diet and VTE. The robustness and heterogeneity of the results were assessed using methods, such as the Cochran Q test, scatter plot, funnel plot, and intercept term test. The MR regression results showed that poultry intake was a risk factor for VTE (odds ratio = 5.265, 95% CI: 1.337-20.738; P < .05). The inverse-variance weighted model results showed a positive causal effect between poultry intake and VTE (odds ratio = 5.265, 95% CI: 1.337-20.738; P < .05). No significant causal relationships existed between either oily fish intake or fresh fruit intake and VTE with no heterogeneity and no gene pleiotropy among SNPs and a low likelihood of potential bias. The leave-one-out test did not identify any SNPs with a significant impact on the causal association estimates, indicating the robustness of the MR results. Poultry intake may be a risk factor for VTE, while there is no significant causal relationship between oily fish and fresh fruit intake and VTE.