Meta-Analysis: Association of Apolipoprotein E Gene Polymorphism with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Chinese Population

Objective To investigate the association between apolipoprotein E (ApoE) gene polymorphism and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods We performed a meta-analysis of 18 studies in Chinese population comprising 2 790 type 2 diabetes mellitus patients and 3 725 control subjects investigating the ApoE gene polymorphism. Meta-analysis was performed with RevMan version 5. Results An overall odds ratio of 1.27 [95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.02～1.58] was found for ApoEe4 carriers, which was 1.05 (95% CI 0.89～1.24) for ApoEe2 carriers. Odds ratios in patients without coronary heart diseases attenuated towards the null (OR 0.75,95% CI 0.44 ～1.27), unlike those in patients with coronary heart diseases (OR 2.94, 95%CI 2.10～4.11). Conclusions ApoE gene polymorphism may represent a modest but significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes. ApoEe4 carriers especially in patients with coronary heart diseases are more susceptible to type 2 diabetes mellitus.