Prevalence of hypothyroidism and thyroid nodule in chronic hemodialysis Iranian patients

End stage renal disease (ESRD) reasons several changes in the function of thyroid gland as; lower levels of thyroid hormones, altered hormone metabolism, and increased iodine storage. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of nodular goiter and hypothyroidism in hemodialysis (HD) patients compared with normal population.

This cross-sectional study was conducted among HD patients and healthy people as the control group for thyroid function evaluation. Thyroid gland was evaluated by physical examination and ultrasonography. Blood level of FT3, FT4, TSH, TPO Ab, and urinary iodine excretion were checked in both groups. Data were analyzed using SPSS-17 and P-value less than 0.05 was considered as the significance level.

Eighty six HD patients (57.2 ± 17.2 mean age, 48 men) and 86 healthy people (56.6 ± 16.8 mean age, 48 men) were enrolled in this study. Goiter was confirmed by physical examination in 29.0% of the HD patients and 12.8% of the control group (P = 0.04). Nodular goiter that was shown by ultrasonography was found in 27.9% and 3.5% of the HD and control groups, respectively (P = 0.01). HD patients had a higher frequency of reduced FT3 (40.9% vs. 4.6%, P < 0.01) and increased TSH (18.6% vs. 8.1%, P < 0.03(. TPO Ab was positive in 15.1% of the HD and 11.6% of the control groups (P = 0.14).

The high incidence of nodular goiter and hypothyroidism in ESRD patients shows that screening for thyroid dysfunction and goiter, using appropriate laboratory tests, should be considered in evaluations of ESRD patients.