Abstract
BACKGROUND: Choline was frequently reported to have some beneficial effects on memory function. However, the association of dietary choline with different types of amnesia is not well understood. The objective of this study was to examine the association between dietary intake of choline and transient global amnesia (TGA). METHODS: This case-control study was carried out on 258 patients with TGA and 520 participants without amnesia. Data on dietary choline intake was collected using a validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). All participants were examined for amnesia by a neurologist according to the Kaplan and Hodges criteria. RESULTS: There was an inverse association between TGA and dietary choline intake after adjustment for age and gender (OR: 0.98, CI 95% 0.96-0.98, P = 0.03). The association remained significant after additional adjusting for physical activity, body mass index (BMI), occupation, marital status, smoking, and drinking alcohol (OR: 0.98, CI 95% 0.96-0.99, P = 0.04) and after further adjustment for calorie and food groups intake (OR: 0.98, CI 95% 0.96-0.99, P = 0.03). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicated that choline may have beneficial effects against TGA. Further longitudinal studies are warranted.