Thyroid function and antithyroid autoantibodies in patients with connective tissue diseases
Year: 2006
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Autoimmune thyroid disease (ATD) has been described in patients with connective tissue diseases (CTD). The aim of this study was to estimate and compare the prevalence of ATD in a group of 91 CTD patients, and in their subgroups: 53 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), 24 rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 7 primary Sjogren’s syndrome (SSy) and 7 progressive systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients. A control group of 34 healthy blood volunteers was used for comparison. Serum levels of free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), as well as thyroid autoantibodies (Abs) specific of thyroperoxidase (TPO) and thyroglobulin (TG) were examined. CTD patients, in general, as well as SLE and RA subgroups, had significantly higher number of thyroid dysfunction than the control group (p lt 0.05). The most prominent thyroid dysfunction was subclinical hypothyroidism, with a higher prevalence in all subgroups of patients when compared to the control. Anti-TPO Abs were detected in a significant number of CTD patients, especially in SLE subgroup when compared to the control group. It was also found that a higher number of CTD patients, SLE and RA subgroups, had positive anti-Tg Abs, when compared to the control subjects. In conclusion, the prevalence of ATD in CTD patients was more frequent than in the control group. The patients with anti-TPO Abs and anti-Tg Abs at the time when they were analyzed, had hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism or were clinically and biochemically euthyroid. The prevalence of hypothyroidism was greater than the prevalence of hyperthyroidism in all subgroups of patients.
Language: English
Subfield: Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2186768147