Is Thyroid Hormone Replacement Therapy a Risk for Patients?

A new study shows that suboptimal thyroid hormone replacement is associated with worse hospital outcomes in hypothyroidism patients.

Undertreatment with thyroid hormone replacement can put patients with hypothyroidism at risk for worse hospital outcomes, including longer length of stay and higher rates of readmission, according to a new study published in Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

What is Hypothyroidism?

Hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid, is a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone. It is a common disease in the United States, with millions of patients taking thyroid hormone replacement.

Treatment can be challenging, and patients can be overtreated or undertreated.

Screening Tests for Thyroid Dysfunction
High or low thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) level is indicative of a dysfunctional thyroid.

‘Patients with normal TSH levels before hospitalization had a decreased risk of dying in the hospital and decreased readmission rate compared to patients without hypothyroidism.’

“We found that those patients who were undertreated with thyroid hormone, even weeks or months before hospital admission, had worse hospital outcomes than those without hypothyroidism,” said the lead study author Matthew D. Ettleson, MD, of the University of Chicago in Chicago, Ill.

To explore the risky side of thyroid hormone replacement therapy, researchers conducted a study that included 43,478 patients from a large, U.S.-based patient claims database.

Of these patients, 8,873 had hypothyroidism. The researchers divided patients into four groups based on their levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). Low levels of TSH indicate a patient has been overtreated for their thyroid disease, while high levels of TSH correspond to undertreatment.

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Patients with a high TSH level before hospitalization had a length of stay that was 1.2 days longer, a 49% higher risk of 30-day readmission, and a 43% higher rate of 90-day readmission compared with patients without hypothyroidism.

The results suggest that suboptimal treatment of hypothyroidism is associated with worse hospital outcomes. Both patients and physicians need to know that maintaining optimal thyroid hormone replacement is important to minimize the length of hospital stays and hospital readmission.

Can Acupuncture Treat Thyroid Disease?
Thyroid disorders are affecting more than 42 million people in India. So, try acupuncture to help restore thyroid balance.

It is particularly important for planned admissions where thyroid hormone replacement can be adjusted if needed before admission.

Source-Medindia

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