Possible association between thyroid autoimmunity and Menière's disease

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Immunology
• Endocrinology

Background:

• Meniere's disease (MD) aetiopathogenesis is debated, with potential autoimmune involvement suggested by patient characteristics.
• Previous research indicates associations between MD and specific human leucocyte antigen haplotypes and antibodies against inner ear antigens.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between thyroid autoimmunity and Meniere's disease in a non-selected patient cohort.
• To compare thyroid autoantibody prevalence in MD patients with healthy controls and patients with acute unilateral peripheral vestibulopathy.

Main Methods:

• Recruited 50 MD patients, 82 healthy volunteers (Group A), and 50 patients with acute unilateral peripheral vestibulopathy (Group B).
• Assessed cochlear-vestibular function and analyzed blood levels of TSH, free T3, free T4, TR-Ab, TPO-Ab, and Tg-Ab.
• Compared the prevalence of autoimmune thyroiditis and specific autoantibodies across the three groups.

Main Results:

• The prevalence of autoimmune thyroiditis was similar in healthy controls (7%) and Group B (12%).
• MD patients showed a significantly higher prevalence of thyroid autoantibodies (38%) compared to both control groups (P = 0.0001).
• 14% of MD patients were hyperthyroid on l-thyroxine therapy, unlike controls.

Conclusions:

• A significant association exists between Meniere's disease and thyroid autoimmunity.
• These findings support the hypothesis that an autoimmune factor contributes to the aetiopathogenesis of MD.
• Recommends multi-disciplinary clinical investigation for MD patients to explore potential autoimmune links.