Clinical characteristics of subacute thyroiditis is different than it used to be - current state based on 15 years...

The clinical characteristics of subacute thyroiditis (SAT) has been changing in recent years. There are more and more patients with painless SAT, and more cases of SAT with elevated levels of anti-thyroid antibodies were reported. The aim of the study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics of SAT patients with special regard to the differences between the previously described and currently observed features of the disease.

Clinical and laboratory data were retrospectively reviewed for 64 patients with confirmed SAT.

Mean age of the patients was 42.67 years. The male to female ratio was 1:7. Neck or ear pain was reported by 93.75% of patients, while fever occurred in 65.63% of patients. The aTPO and aTg levels were increased in 15.5% and 33.3% of patients, respectively. TRAb level was increased in 6% of patients. Transient microhaematuria was present in 63% of analyzed cases. No statistically significant differences in clinical characteristics or laboratory results were found between the groups with- and without neck/ear pain, with- and without elevated TRAb, and with- and without elevated aTPO and/or aTg.

In our study, several new features of current SAT course, different from what we used to know about the disease, were reported. Higher frequency of painless SAT than it was ever described, was observed. Moreover, in as much as one third of the patients aTPO and/or aTg were present, and in 6% of SAT cases the coexistence of TRAb was demonstrated. Transient microhaematuria was typical for the acute SAT phase.