| Summary: | <h4>Background</h4>Studies have reported inconsistent findings regarding the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and homocysteine (HCY) level. This study aimed to assess the difference in plasma HCY level between OSA patients and controls by conducting a meta-analysis of published studies.<h4>Methods</h4>Database of PubMed, SCI, and China National Knowledge Internet (CNKI) were comprehensively searched. Eligible studies regarding plasma HCY level in OSA patients were identified by two independent reviewers. RevMan (version 5.2) and STATA (version 12.0) were employed for data synthesis.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 10 studies involving 432 subjects were included. Meta-analysis showed that plasma HCY levels in OSA group were 3.11 µmol/l higher than that in control group (95% confidence interval: 2.08 to 4.15, P<0.01). Subgroup analysis revealed a more significant differences between OSA patients and controls when average body mass index ≥ 30 (the total weighted mean difference (WMD) was 3.64), average age<50 (the total WMD was 3.96) and average apnea hypopnea index ≥ 35 (the total WMD was 4.54).<h4>Conclusions</h4>In this meta-analysis, plasma HCY levels were found to be higher in OSA patients compared to control subjects.
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