[Thyroid response to exogenous TSH stimulation in diabetic patients]

Complicated diabetic patients have a marked decrease of plasmatic level of T3 and a less important decrease of T4. They are caused by the alteration of the extra-thyroid T3 formation from T4 and lower TSH release. 11 patients with a different metabolic state had a basal determination of T3 and T4 and 6 hours after the administration of 5 Units of TSH intramuscular in order to see whether those changes described previously existed in any other intrinsic thyroid alteration secondary to complicated diabetes. The median increases observed were between normal limits (T3: 96%; T4: 45%) and in accordance with this, a direct correlation between glycemia and its respective rate of hormonal increase were observed as well, without any statistical significance (r = 0.56 in T4; r = 0.36 in T3). These results allow us to confirm that there is not an eventual thyroid function alteration during complicated diabetes as opposed to the afore-mentioned increase of the extra-thyroid factors.