Case report: Hashimoto's thyroiditis associated with Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis is a well-defined systemic vasculitic syndrome that primarily affects the upper and lower respiratory tracts and the kidney. Hashimoto's thyroiditis is another autoimmune syndrome with the thyroid as its primary target organ. The relation between Hashimoto's thyroiditis and Wegener's granulomatosis is not reported in the English literature. In this article, the authors describe a patient with Hashimoto's thyroiditis in whom fulminant Wegener's granulomatosis subsequently developed. The immunologic similarities between these two diseases leads to the consideration that Wegener's granulomatosis possibly may be another immunologic disorder associated with Hashimoto's thyroiditis.