[Status of the thyroid gland in patients with schizophrenia]

A study was made of pituitary-thyroid function in patients with different forms of schizophrenia. Radioimmunoassay was used. All the patients with schizophrenia showed impairment of interrelations within the pituitary-thyroid system, which manifested by accumulation in the peripheral blood of metabolically active T3 due to enhanced degradation of T4 in the peripheral tissues. The rise of TTH concentration represents one of the mechanisms of correction, aimed at the attainment of the physiological content of T4 at the expense of its additional output for its level in the blood serum is appreciably reduced.