The causal relationship between body mass index and perianal abscess: a Mendelian randomization study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Observational studies suggest an association between elevated body mass index (BMI) and perianal abscess risk, but residual confounding and reverse causality limit causal inference. Mendelian randomization (MR) offers a robust approach to assess causality by leveraging genetic variants as instrumental variables. This study aimed to evaluate the causal relationship between BMI and perianal abscess using a MR framework.

Methods

We analyzed European-ancestry genome-wide association study (GWAS) data for BMI (n = 359,983) and perianal abscess (1,287 cases/182,423 controls). A total of 364 independent SNPs associated with BMI at genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10⁻⁸) were selected as instrumental variables, with stringent linkage disequilibrium clumping (r² < 0.01, cl

SUBMITTER: Wu L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12817671 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature