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Increased leptin levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis

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Irish Journal of Medical Science (1971 -) Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Aim

Published data regarding the association of leptin levels with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are contradictory. To derive a more precise estimation of this relationship, a meta-analysis was performed.

Methods

Published literature from PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library was obtained. Pooled standard mean difference (SMD) with 95 % confidence interval (CI) was calculated using fixed-effects or random-effect model analysis. Heterogeneity among studies was evaluated using the Cochran Q and I 2 statistics. The study quality was assessed by the Newcastle–Ottawa scale.

Results

A total of 20 studies including 998 RA patients and 692 controls were finally included in the meta-analysis. Compared to healthy controls, RA patients had significantly higher leptin levels (SMD 1.19, 95 % CI 0.59–1.79). Subgroup analyses showed that region, race, age, body mass index (BMI), disease duration and disease activity were positively associated with plasma leptin levels in RA patients. Sensitivity analysis showed no significant change when any one study was excluded. Publication bias was also undetected.

Conclusions

The present meta-analysis suggested that leptin levels were higher in RA patients than those in healthy controls, which may be subject to different region, race, age, BMI, disease duration and disease activity.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81102192) and the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (20113420120008).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Health Management, Anhui Medical University, 81 Meishan Road, Hefei, 230032, Anhui, China

    G. Tian, J.-N. Liang & D. Zhou

  2. The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, 81 Meishan Road, Hefei, 230022, Anhui, China

    J.-N. Liang

  3. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230022, Anhui, China

    H.-F. Pan

  4. The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, 678 Furong Road, Hefei, 230601, Anhui, China

    D. Zhou

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  1. G. Tian
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Correspondence to D. Zhou.

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Tian, G., Liang, JN., Pan, HF. et al. Increased leptin levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis. Ir J Med Sci 183, 659–666 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-014-1072-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-014-1072-9

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