Abstract
INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to investigate the causal relationship between phosphatidylcholine (PC) levels and dysmenorrhea using Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. METHODS: We conducted a two-sample MR analysis using GWAS data on PC levels and dysmenorrhea. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with PC levels were used as instrumental variables. MR-Egger regression and inverse variance weighting (IVW) were used to estimate the causal effect of PC levels on dysmenorrhea. Sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the robustness of the results. RESULTS: The IVW analysis revealed a significant positive association between higher PC levels and dysmenorrhea (OR: 1.533, 95% CI: 1.039-2.262, P = 0.031). The MR-Egger regression did not detect pleiotropy. Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of the results. CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence suggesting a causal link between increased PC levels and dysmenorrhea. Further research is needed to understand the biological mechanisms underlying this relationship and to explore potential therapeutic implications.