A meta-analysis on interleukin-1 gene cluster polymorphism and genetic susceptibility for ankylosing spondylitis

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the association between interleukin (IL)-1 gene cluster polymorphism and the genetic susceptibility for ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods: Relevant published data were retrieved through Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrance library and Chinese Bio-medicine Database (CBM). Studies eligible for this meta-analysis bad to meet all the following inclusion criteria: (1) the content was associated with population-based case-control studies, (2) the study was on the relationship between the IL-1 gene cluster polymorphism and AS, (3) the diagnosis of AS was based on the modified New York criteria (1984) by the rheumatologist. (4) the raw data including the frequencies of alleles and certain genotypes in case and control groups could be collected. and (5) the distribution of studied loci in the populations was in accord with the Hardy-Meinberg equilibrium. Researches that didn't meet the inclusion criteria, as well as the duplicated reports, family-based studies were excluded. All analyses were conducted with the software 'Review Manager' Version 4.2.8.