Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences, cilt.25, sa.4, ss.261-265, 1995 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
To investigate whether subclinical hypothyroidism is associated with changes in serum lipid profiles, 42 females with subclinical hypothyroidism were compared with 32 euthyroid females matched for age and body mass index. Of the 42 females with subclinical hypothyroidism, 23 were re-evaluated after 6 months of L-thyroxine therapy. Total cholesterol and triglyceride levels of women with subclinical hypothyroidism were not different from controls. But there was a decreased high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (p < 0.001) and an increased low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (p < 0.005) level in subclinical hypothyroidism. Total cholesterol / HDL-C ratio was also significantly increased in subclinical hypothyroidism (p < 0.001). After 6 months of L-thyroxine therapy, normalization of serum TSH was associated with (i) no significant change in serum levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides, (ii) an increase in HDL-C (p < 0.001) and a decrease in LDL-C (p < 0.001) levels, and (iii) normalization of total cholesterol / HDL-C ratio. These results show that subclinical hypothyroidism is associated with atherogenic lipoprotein profiles which may be returned to normal with L-thyroxine therapy. Therefore, early detection and treatment of such patients who are at risk for the development of premature atherosclerosis seems to be necessary.