Bone mineral content in hypothyroid male patients with hormone replacement: a 3-year study

Several studies have reported that short-term thyroid replacement to the euthyroid state in hypothyroid patients produces loss of both cortical and trabecular bone. However, long-term follow-up studies on this subject have not been reported. We conducted a 3 year follow-up study on 35 white male patients, including 24 patients (group 1 and 2) with hypothyroidism receiving thyroid hormone replacement to the euthyroid state and 11 patients (groups 3 and 4) with Graves' disease. The bone mineral content of the distal radius was determined by single-photon absorption techniques with an iodine 125 source. It was found that there was no statistically significant difference in bone mineral content by year for any group, indicating no evidence of significant loss of cortical bone mineral by thyroid hormone replacement to the euthyroid state in hypothyroid patients.