Association of the vascular endothelial growth factor gene polymorphisms (-460C/T, +405G/C and +936T/C) with endometriosis: a meta-analysis.

Published data on the association between the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene -460C/T (rs833061), +405G/C (rs2010963), +936T/C (rs3025039) polymorphisms and endometriosis risk are inconclusive. Eleven eligible case-control studies including 2690 cases and 2803 controls were included in this meta-analysis through searching the databases of PubMed and CBMdisc (up to August 1, 2011). In the overall analysis, no significant association between the -460C/T and +405G/C polymorphisms and risk of endometriosis was observed. However, significant associations were observed between endometriosis risk and VEGF+936T polymorphism with summarized odds ratio of 1.19 (95%CI, 1.02-1.37), 1.18 (95%CI, 1.03-1.37), 1.15 (95%CI, 1.01-1.30) for CT versus CC genotype, dominant mode (CT/TT vs. CC) and allele comparison (T vs. C), respectively. Furthermore, stratified analysis showed that significantly strong association between +936T/C polymorphism and endometriosis was present only in stage III-IV (OR = 1.32 for dominant mode; OR = 1.30 for T vs. C), but not in stage I-II. However, no significantly increased risk of endometriosis was found in any of the genetic models in Asians or in Caucasians. This meta-analysis supports that VEGF+936T/C polymorphism is capable of causing endometriosis susceptibility.