Back to Search
Start Over
Review of the natural course of subclinical hypothyroidism and study of its costs
- Source :
- Endocrinología, Diabetes y Nutrición (English ed.). 66:550-554
- Publication Year :
- 2019
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2019.
-
Abstract
- Introduction Subclinical hypothyroidism is defined as elevation of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, with normal thyroid hormone levels and negative autoimmunity, in asymptomatic patients with no findings on examination. Because of the unwarranted increase in thyroid function tests in asymptomatic children, the main objective of this review was to analyze the course of these patients. Analysis of associated costs was a secondary objective. Material and methods A longitudinal, observational, retrospective study of patients referred to the endocrinology department of a tertiary hospital for high TSH levels (TSH 5–20 mIU/l). Clinical and laboratory variables, number of visits until discharge, need for treatment, monitoring time, and economic variables were collected. Results The study sample consisted of 155 patients with a mean age of 7.8 years ± 3.6 SD. Referrals to endocrinology accounted for 4% of first office visits. Baseline mean TSH level was 7.8 mU/l (5.03–15.8 mU/l). TSH levels normalized after the first repeated measurement during the subsequent month in 60% of cases. A total of 83.6% of patients were discharged within a maximum of 3 years, with a mean follow-up of 8.14 ± 6.8 months and 2.4 visits/patient. Average cost per patient was € 251.27 (range € 143.49–444.21). Conclusion It is essential not to alarm the family when subclinical hypothyroidism is detected, because this is a biochemical situation which normalizes in most cases. This fact, together with the mean cost of specialized care, suggests that the first step should be repeated TSH measurements in primary care.
- Subjects :
- Male
Thyroid Hormones
endocrine system
Pediatrics
medicine.medical_specialty
Time Factors
endocrine system diseases
Office visits
Remission, Spontaneous
Thyrotropin
030209 endocrinology & metabolism
Thyroid Function Tests
Asymptomatic
Thyroid function tests
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Hypothyroidism
030225 pediatrics
medicine
Humans
Child
Retrospective Studies
Subclinical infection
Natural course
medicine.diagnostic_test
business.industry
Retrospective cohort study
Asymptomatic Diseases
Costs and Cost Analysis
Female
Observational study
medicine.symptom
business
Hormone
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 25300180
- Volume :
- 66
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Endocrinología, Diabetes y Nutrición (English ed.)
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....3ebc72d0610ee5ffe0a337014767aa18