Thyroid Autoimmunity in Patients with Chronic Urticaria.

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Endocrinology
• Dermatology

Background:

• Chronic urticaria (CU) is a pruritic skin condition lasting over six weeks.
• Its exact cause is unknown, but autoimmunity and endocrine issues are suspected.
• Thyroid autoimmunity is a potential contributing factor in CU pathogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the statistical association between chronic urticaria and thyroid autoimmunity.
• To determine if thyroid auto-antibodies are more prevalent in CU patients.

Main Methods:

• A prospective case-control study compared 70 CU patients with 70 healthy volunteers.
• Thyroid auto-antibodies (anti-thyroglobulin antibody [anti-Tg], anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody [anti-TPO]) were measured.
• Thyroid hormones (T4, T3, TSH) were also assessed in all participants.

Main Results:

• Thyroid functional abnormalities were present in 11.43% of CU patients.
• Anti-Tg and anti-TPO antibodies were positive in 23% and 30% of CU patients, respectively.
• Significantly higher frequencies of anti-Tg and anti-TPO were observed in CU patients compared to controls (P < 0.05).

Conclusions:

• A significant association exists between chronic urticaria and thyroid autoimmunity.
• Testing for thyroid auto-antibodies is clinically relevant for patients diagnosed with chronic urticaria.