[The preva-lence and pattern of autoimmune thyroid disease in young patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus]

This study whose purpose was to examine the prevalence and pattern of autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland (TG) in young patients with type I diabetes mellitus (DM1) involved 288 individuals with DM1 whose age was 5.5 to 30years; the average duration of DM1 was 5.5+4.7 years. In all the patients, thyroid ultrasonography was performed, thyroid antibodies (Abs) [thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPO-Abs) and thyroglobulin antibodies (TG-Abs)] were determined, thyroid function was evaluated by measuring the level of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and free reactions of thyroid hormones were assessed. The detection rates of TPO-Abs and TG-Abs were 22.2 and 20.5%, respectively, which was substantially greater than those in apparently healthy individuals matched by age and gender. The frequency of positive thyroid Abs was significantly higher in females. Age at the moment of examination and the duration of DM1 were not found to have an impact on the detection rate of thyroid Abs. The ultrasound signs of autoimmune thyroid diseases were revealed in 19.1% of the cases. 10.0% of the patients with DM1 were found to have these or those TG dysfunctions the most common of which was subclinical hypothyroidism (6.60%). A comprehensive TG assessment in the young patients with DM1 demonstrated the typical signs of autoimmune thyroid disease in 14.2% of the examinees. In the patients with autoimmune thyroid disease, the thyroid was significantly larger and the levels of TSH, TPO-Abs, and TG-Abs were higher than the patients without autoimmune thyroid disease and those at risk for the latter. The proportion of females was significantly higher among the patients 19 with concomitant autoimmune thyroid disease than that among those without the signs of this condition. It has been concluded that the high incidence of autoimmune thyroid disease in young patients with DM1 permits the authors to recommend a screening for its early detection, which involves the measurement of the serum level of TPO-Abs and TG ultrasonography in all females with first detected DM1.