Key clinical point : Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), particularly those with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) have higher serum levels of homocysteine (Hcy).
Major finding : The MS group had higher serum levels of Hcy (standardized mean difference [SMD], 0.64; P less than .0001) compared with the control group. There were no significant differences in levels of vitamin B12 (SMD, –0.08; P = .58) or folate (SMD, 0.07; P = .52) between the MS and control groups. There was a statistically significant difference for Hcy between patients with RRMS and control individuals (SMD, 0.67; P = .004) but not between patients with primary or secondary progressive MS and control individuals.
Study details : A meta-analysis of 21 studies, including 1,738 patients with MS and 1,424 control individuals.
Disclosures: The study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Beijing Municipal Administration of Hospitals Incubating Program. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Citation: Li X et al. Int J Med Sci. 2020 Mar 5. doi: 10.7150/ijms.42058 .