Evaluation of thyroid hormone levels in chronic kidney disease patients

We attempted in this study to determine the thyroid hormone levels in 45 adult chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and 45 ageand sex-matched healthy subjects as controls. The serum thyroid hormone levels were measured by a radioimmunoassay. Serum concentrations of creatinine, urea, electrolytes and total proteins and albumin were measured as well. There was a significant decrease in the levels of serum total T3, total T4 and total protein and albumin levels in CKD patients when compared with the controls. There was a significant increase in the level of thyroid stimulating hormone in the CKD patients compared with the controls. Our study suggests that CKD leads to significant changes in the thyroid hormone levels, which need to be interpreted carefully in these patients.