Subclinical hyperthyroidism significantly associated with increased fracture risk: JAMA

Written By : Jacinthlyn Sylvia |Medically Reviewed By : Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli Published On 2022-11-11T19:30:22+05:30 | Updated On 12 Nov 2022 11:43 AM IST

A recent study by Natalie Daya found that subclinical thyroid dysfunction was closely associated with fracture. The findings were further published in the November 2022 edition of Journal of American Medical Association.

A total of 10,946 participants from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study was included in the study. These participants were from community-dwelling individuals Maryland, North Carolina, Mississippi, and the suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota. They were not taking thyroid medications and also had no history of fractures.

The normal range of free thyroxine levels from 0.85 to 1.4 ng/dL. The measured thyrotropin level lesser than 0.56 mIU/L was defined as subclinical hyperthyroidism, thyrotropin level higher than 5.1 mIU/L defined as subclinical hypothyroidism, and thyrotropin level of 0.56 to 5.1 mIU/L was considered euthyroidism.

The findings of the study were:

1. Of the total participants 93.0% had euthyroidism, 2.6% had subclinical hyperthyroidism, and 4.4% had subclinical hypothyroidism.

2. A total of 3556 incident fractures were faced during the median follow up of 21 years.

3. The adjusted hazard ratios of fracture were 1.34 for those with subclinical hyperthyroidism and 0.90 for those with subclinical hypothyroidism compared with individuals with euthyroidism.

4. In people with normal free thyroxine levels,

• Individuals with thyrotropin levels in the lower than the normal range were closely associated to a higher fracture-related hospitalization risk.

• Fracture risk was higher in individuals with thyrotropin concentrations less than 0.56 mIU/L.

In conclusion, this study clearly suggests that subclinical hyperthyroidism is closely associated with fracture risk. This calls for more aggressive screening and monitoring of the patients to prevent further events and bone mineral disease.

Source:

Daya, N. R., Fretz, A., Martin, S. S., Lutsey, P. L., Echouffo-Tcheugui, J. B., Selvin, E., & Juraschek, S. P. (2022). Association Between Subclinical Thyroid Dysfunction and Fracture Risk. In JAMA Network Open (Vol. 5, Issue 11, p. e2240823). American Medical Association (AMA).https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.40823

JAMA Network Openfracturesthyroid dysfunction

Source : JAMA Network Open

Jacinthlyn Sylvia

Neuroscience Masters graduate

Jacinthlyn Sylvia, a Neuroscience Master's graduate from Chennai has worked extensively in deciphering the neurobiology of cognition and motor control in aging. She also has spread-out exposure to Neurosurgery from her Bachelor’s. She is currently involved in active Neuro-Oncology research. She is an upcoming neuroscientist with a fiery passion for writing. Her news cover at Medical Dialogues feature recent discoveries and updates from the healthcare and biomedical research fields. She can be reached at editorial@medicaldialogues.in

Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli

Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: drkohli@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751