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Thyroid hormone patterns in elderly patients undergoing elective coronary procedures

W Nammas1, M Mostafa, I Sabry

  • 1Cardiology Department, School of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Egypt. wnammas@hotmail.com

European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences
|March 26, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Thyroid dysfunction is common in elderly patients undergoing heart procedures. However, thyroid hormone levels did not correlate with the severity of coronary artery disease in this patient group.

Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology
  • Cardiology
  • Geriatrics

Background:

  • Thyroid dysfunction is prevalent in older adults.
  • Elderly patients undergoing coronary procedures represent a specific population for studying thyroid health.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate thyroid hormone patterns in elderly patients undergoing elective coronary procedures.
  • To determine if thyroid hormone levels correlate with the extent of coronary artery disease (CAD) in this demographic.

Main Methods:

  • 81 elderly patients undergoing elective coronary procedures were analyzed.
  • Assays included free thyroxine, free tri-iodothyronine, thyroid stimulating hormone, and thyroid antibodies.
  • Patients were categorized by the number of diseased coronary arteries: insignificant, single-vessel, and multi-vessel disease.

Main Results:

  • 50.6% of patients were euthyroid; 17.3% had hypothyroidism (subclinical or clinical).
  • 6.2% had hyperthyroidism (subclinical or clinical); 25.9% had sick euthyroid syndrome.
  • No statistically significant differences in thyroid dysfunction or antibody levels were found across CAD severity groups.

Conclusions:

  • Thyroid hormone disturbances, particularly hypothyroidism, are frequent in elderly patients undergoing coronary procedures.
  • The extent of coronary artery disease in the elderly does not appear to be related to their thyroid hormone patterns.
Abstract

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