TSH Receptor Antibody Heterogeneity in Children and Adolescents With Graves' Disease
Graves' DiseaseGraves' disease, the most common form of hyperthyroidism in children, is caused by Thyrotropin (TSH) Receptor Antibodies (TRAbs) that mimic the action of TSH. The disease leads to significant morbidity in children both due to the prolonged course of antithyroid medication often required for sustained immunological remission and the high risk of relapse when medication is withdrawn. The ability to predict which patients are most likely to fail medical management would greatly improve the choice of therapy. In the past, large goiter size, age at diagnosis, increased biochemical severity, and decreased body mass index have all been associated with a poorer prognosis, but these clinical indicators lack sensitivity and specificity. Preliminary data suggest that the new TRAb assays are both sensitive and specific for the measurement of TRAbs in children with Graves' disease. In addition, variation in these antibodies over time is not the same in all patients. The goal of this proposal will be to prospectively follow children with newly diagnosed Graves' disease and use microarray technology to determine if there are genes whose expression differ in patients who respond to medical therapy versus those who will need more definitive therapy earlier in their disease.
Parathyroid Reimplantation in Forearm Subcutaneous Tissue During Thyroidectomy: a Simple Way to...
Thyroid GoiterThyroid Carcinoma2 moreThe purpose of this study is to evaluate safety and effectiveness of normal parathyroid tissue reimplantation in forearm subcutaneous tissue in case of accidental removal of parathyroid gland during thyroid surgery.
Effective Iodide Therapy for Untreated Patients With Graves' Hyperthyroidism Avoiding Thionamide...
Graves DiseaseAs the drug treatment of Graves' hyperthyroidism, Plummer reported the effectiveness of excess iodide in 1923 and iodide was used as the therapy for Graves' hyperthyroidism starting from the 1930s. After the introduction of more potent antithyroid drug, thionamide, most thyroidologists preferred to use thionamide expecting potent antithyroid effect, but some careful thyroidologists continued to prescribe iodide in mild type Graves' hyperthyroidism. Recently, American and Europe Thyroid Association recommended methylmercaptoimidazole (MMI), one of the potent thionamide drugs, as the first-choice drug for Graves' hyperthyroidism. However, it became apparent that thionamide has serious side effects such as not only agranulocytosis, but also severe liver injury, MPO-ANCA related vasculitis and embryopathy in the pregnant women. In Japan, one patient died of thionamide-induced agranulocytosis every year. The incidence of side effects including minor side effect of drug eruption is more than 10%. We used to treat the patients with Graves' hyperthyroidism with MMI, as we reported in J Clin Endocrinol Metab 65:719, 1987. However, many side effects of thionamide prompted us to revive the treatment with classical KI in our outpatient clinic and found that KI was effective in the patients who showed side effects to thionamide, resulting in remission (reported in J Clin Endocrinol Metab 99:3995, 2014). Therefore, we began to treat the patients without serious complications such as heart failure or arrhythmia, with 100mg KI since 1996 and followed for 180 days. We were surprised to find that serum thyroid hormone level decreased in all the patients. Thionamide drugs were added only when euthyroidism could not be achieved by KI alone. Compared with thionamide, side effect of KI was almost none. Between 1996 and 2004, about 504 patients were treated with KI and a third of the patients were successfully treated with KI alone and other patients were also successfully treated with the combination of KI and thionamide, suggesting additive effect, or by radioactive iodine therapy. The long term prognosis of the patients initially treated with KI was almost the same as the patients initially treated with MMI. Our clinical experience suggested that patients with Graves' hyperthyroidism are also susceptible to excess iodide, as in the cases with Hashimoto thyroiditis, and this suppressive effect of excess iodide on the thyroid gland is a useful information for many patients suffering from Graves' hyperthyroidism and thionamide side effects.
The Epidemiology, Management and Comorbidities in Alopecia Areata in Czech Republic
Alopecia AreataAlopecia Totalis27 moreThe study series consists of three studies with the aim to assess the incidence, prevalence, risk factors, comorbidities and management of patients with alopecia areata in Czech Republic based on the patients and registry of a dermatology clinic of a metropolitan hospital.
Characteristics of Islet β-cell Functions in Chinese Patients With Graves' Disease
Graves DiseasePatients with GD often present with glucose dysregulation, which, according to most studies, is associated with islet β-cell dysfunctions, enhanced gluconeogenesis and insulin resistance (IR). Current studies focus mainly on IR, and a few that investigate islet β-cell functions show inconsistent results. This study examined the characteristics of glucose dysregulation in Chinese patients with GD, and furthermore evaluated the effects of thyroid dysfunction on islet β-cell functions and subsequently the carbohydrate metabolism.
Analysis of BPA Concentration in Serum in Women of Reproductive Age With Autoimmune Thyroid Disease...
HypothyroidismHyperthyroidism2 moreThe aim of the study is to assess the relationship between the concentration of bisphenol A in serum and selected parameters of thyroid function in women of reproductive age with thyroid dysfunction - Hashimoto's disease and Graves' disease.
Change of Gut Microbiome in the Treatment of Graves' Disease
Graves' DiseaseGraves' disease is the main cause of hyperthyroidism. Graves' disease has a prevalence of 0.5% in the general population. As a non-surgical treatment, antithyroid drug (ATD) and radioactive iodine treatment have been proposed and ATD is the first-line treatment in Korea. However, ATD has a rare but fatal side effect of agranulocytosis. Furthermore only half of its users maintain long-term remission and frequent recurrence is a problem to this disease. Therefore it is essential to distinguish between patients who respond well to ATD and those who resist it. The aim of this study is to verify the changes in gut microbiome in Graves' disease patients before and after six-month treatment with ATD. Patients first diagnosed with Graves' disease will participate in the study. The study design is a prospective longitudinal trial. The patients are asked to have their gut microbiome analyzed before and after the treatment of Graves' disease with ATD. Primary endpoint is the changes of analyzed gut microbiome before and after ATD treatment. Secondary outcome is to find species that can be used as a biomarker to differentiate the patients refractory to ATD.
Heart Rhythm After Intravenous Methylprednisolone Administration
Graves DiseaseGraves Ophthalmopathy4 moreHigh doses of intravenous (iv.) glucocorticoids (GCs) are commonly used as a treatment for many autoimmune and inflammatory disorders. According to the European Group on Graves' Orbitopathy (EUGOGO) guidelines, intravenous methylprednisolone (IVMP) is an accepted first-line agent for active, moderate-to-severe and very severe Graves' orbitopathy (GO). This treatment is proven to be more efficient and safer than oral GCs. However, some patients may experience adverse cardiovascular effects during the administration of iv. GCs, which in rare cases may even be fatal. There are limited data, mostly obtained from case reports, reporting the occurrence of cardiac arrhythmias, acute myocardial infarction or heart failure. Increased heart rhythm (HR) has drawn attention of researchers as a possible adverse effect correlated with IVMP. During this study, investigators performed 72-hours of Holter ECG and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) to evaluate the impact of IVMP on patients with moderate-to-severe GO, concerning HR and blood pressure (BP) changes. In order to elucidate possible mechanism of observed changes, researchers investigated the level of potassium in serum and urine and catecholamines (epinephrine, norepinephrine) in serum. All patients were treated routinely according to EUGOGO recommendations with standard doses of methylprednisolone with standard recommended schedule. Inclusion criterion for the therapy was according to EUGOGO guidelines active, moderate-to-severe and active GO (12 pulses of IVMP 6x0.5g followed by 6x0.25g every week).
Post-Radioiodine Graves' Management: The PRAGMA-Study
Graves' DiseaseThyroid dysfunction following radioiodine for Graves' disease is common, potentially detrimental and avoidable. A variety of clinical strategies are employed in the post-radioiodine era util the patient is on a stable thyroid hormone replacement regimen, which include the use of anti-thyroid drugs, antithyroid drugs with thyroxine, early thyroxine replacement and watchful monitoring until the onset of hypothyroidism. Which of these is most effective in avoiding dysthyroidism, is unknown. This study aims to address this lack of evidence. It will focus on Graves' disease as this is the commonest cause of thyrotoxicosis and the commonest indication for RI therapy. It will provide an insight into potential strategies for improving important clinical outcomes.
Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD) and Autoimmunity
SCADAddison Disease28 moreThis case control study aims to determine whether spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is associated with autoimmune diseases and to update the incidence of SCAD in a population-based cohort.