RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Previous clinical studies and meta-analyses have shown controversial results on the association between C3435T polymorphism of the ABCB1 gene and anti-epileptic drug (AED) resistance. Based on the fact that sample size and confounding factors could contribute to the inconsistency, we performed an updated meta-analysis by including the most recent studies, and subgroup analysis was conducted to evaluate the effect of confounding factors on the association. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We searched articles in 6 electronic databases including PubMed, Medline, Embase, Web of science, Cochrane Library, CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure) for relevant articles up to June 2020. RESULTS: The current analysis showed that the C allele of C3435T variant was a risk factor for drug resistance in the overall populations (C allele vs. T allele, OR: 1.13; 95% CI: 1.02 - 1.25; p = 0.02) and in the Caucasians (C allele vs. T allele, OR: 1.09; 95% CI: 1.09 - 1.43; p = 0.002), while no association was observed in Asians and Indians. Particularly, our study reported for the first time that the 3435T allele was more common in epilepsy patients with drug resistance in the Tunisian population (C allele vs. T allele, OR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.15 - 0.65; p = 0.002). In addition, our present analysis suggested an association between C3435T and AED resistance in cryptogenic, symptomatic, but not in idiopathic patients. Subgroup studies based on age and gender showed no association. CONCLUSION: AED resistance in Caucasian and Tunisian populations may benefit from ABCB1 C3435T genotyping. We recommend that more details, such as gender and etiology of epilepsy, should be taken into account to draw a reliable conclusion in future studies.