Serum and tissue mucoproteins and sialic acid in thyroid diseases

To find the correlation coefficient of serum mucoproteins and sialic acid to thyroid tissue in thyroid diseases. The study was carried out at J.P.M.C, Karachi. A total of twenty four thyroid patients and twenty normal subjects were studied. The cases were divided into non toxic goiter fourteen, and toxic goiter ten on the basis of clinical and physical examination, thyroid scanning and hormone analysis. Thyroid hormones were estimated in serum. Mucoproteins and sialic acid were estimated in serum as well as in thyroid tissue. Estimations of thyroid hormones and thyroxine binding globulin [T.B.G.] are useful clinically to evaluate the functions status and diagnosis of different thyroid disorders. Thyroid tissue is mainly composed of glycoprotein, thyroglobulin, and different studies showed that serum glycoprotein fractions varied in different thyroid diseases. Significantly increased levels of T[4] were observed in toxic goiter group. The levels of TBG was significantly increased in non toxic goiter, toxic goiter patients while T[4]/TBG ratio was significantly decreased in non toxic goiter. Coefficient correlation [r] of serum to tissue mucoproteins shows an inverse relationship in non toxic goiter and toxic goiter patients. In non toxic goiter and toxic goiter patients the serum sialic acid levels to tissue sialic acid levels also shows an inverse relationship. Correlation coefficient analysis showed an inverse relationship of serum mucoproteins and sialic acid to thyroid tissue. It signifies that carbohydrate moieties are increased in the blood when the tissue are hyperactive and in the pathological state. It further concludes that thyrotoxic state might be converted into nodular form even into cancerous form later on

Anti-thyroglobulin and anti-thyroid microsomal antibodies in thyroid disorders

High titers of antibodies to thyroglobulin [ATA] and thyroid microsomal antigen [ATMA] are the hallmarks of human autoimmune thyroid diseases. The clinical significance of these autoantibodies in other thyroid disorders is still unclear. The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence and titres of these antibodies in Omani patients [mean age 32, range 5-81 years] with different thyroid disorders. This was done in order to investigate any correlation regarding clinical manifestations that may be unique to patients attending Sultan Qaboos University Hospital [SQUH]. Serum levels of ATA and ATMA in 400 cases involving four groups of thyroid disorders [one hundred each with Hashimoto's disease, Graves' disease, thyroid cancer and goitre] and 100 cases of non-thyroid disorders were studied. The antibodies were tested using a commercial haemagglutination assay [Thymune-T and Thymune-M]. The overall prevalence of ATA or ATMA antibodies with thyroid disease was 47% and in non-thyroid disorders was 8%. The ATA was positive in 27% of all the patients with thyroid disorders compared to only 4% of those in the non-thyroid groups while ATMA was positive in 42% and 8% respectively. Among all patients, ATA and ATMA were positive in 64% of patients with Graves's disease, 81% in those with Hashimoto's, 30% of goiter patients, and 20% of those with thyroid carcinoma. The prevalence according to the age within each group for the three ranges: less than 20 years, between 20-40 years and over 40 years, showed the following results: within Graves were 12, 49 and 39% respectively; in the goitre group: 23, 55 and 22%; in the Hashimotos' group: 18, 54 and 28% and 7, 56 and 37% among the patients with thyroid carcinoma. The female to male ratio prevalence was 68% and 32% in Graves disease, 92% and 8% in Hashimotos', 75% and 25% in thyroid cancer and 88% and 12% in goiter. This study confirms the prevalence of a high level of thyroid autoantibodies in these Omani patients as in Caucasians, and its correlation to age and gender. It also indicated the importance of screening for ATA and ATMA in non-autoimmune thyroid disorders. Their significance in thyroid cancers needs further elucidation

Goiter in rural area of Aligarh district.

The survey of iodine deficiency disorder (IDD) and an inquiry about intake of goitrogenic items in two villages of the Aligarh District with a population of 1819 was done. Out of 1152 subjects examined, 348 had goiters but no other abnormality related to the IDD could be found in these subjects. The goiter positivity was 30.2% with visible goiter (grade II & III) rate 8.5%. Six of the subjects had multi nodular goiter of grade III. Urinary iodine levels in 316 of the goitrous subjects were lower (4.939 +/- 1.593 micrograms/dL, M +/- SD, P < 0.001, Median 4.9 micrograms/dL) than 50 urban inhabitants (6.638 +/- 1.372 micrograms/dL). Through in most of the cases (83.9%) T3, T4 and TSH were within normal range, in 35% of the 69 from whom the blood samples were drawn, T3 levels > 150 ng/dL and in 41% of the cases TSH levels > 3.5 mU/L was seen. As in most of the goitrous subjects T3, T4, TSH levels were within normal limits, only iodine deficiency could not be the causative factor for the goiter in 30.2% (severe endemia) of the total population of these two villages. Consumption of millets by the villagers, known to contain goitrogens along with the iodine deficiency in the food and drinking water appears to be responsible for the higher goiter rate in these villagers.

Total serum levels of triiodothyronine (T3) thyroxine (T4) and thyrotropine (TSH) in school going children of Dibrugarh district: an endemic goitre region of Assam.

The Thyroid Status was studied by estimating the total serum levels of T3 and T4 by radioimmunoassay (RIA) and TSH by radioimmunometric Assay (IRMA) from 635 school children (8-20 years; male 129, female 506) of the Dibrugarh district: a chronic endemic goitrous region of India. The results were compared with the control group of 147 (male 48, female 99) of healthy medical students of the same geographical area. The average values of T3 and TSH of school children were found higher and T4 lower than the control; the difference were only significant for T3 and TSH. T3/T4 ratio is more in school children than the control. The findings of low T4 and high TSH indicate that the school children (Pubertal stage) from chronic iodine deficients areas suffer from poor thyroid status; the male seemed to have been affected more than the female. As age advances the thyroid status improves in female.

Maternal and newborn thyroid hormonal profile in a non-goitrous area of Myanmar.

Serum thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3) and thyrotropin (TSH) levels of 325 pairs of blood samples from the newborn infants and their mothers were determined with the aim of establishing the thyroid hormonal profile of the newborn babies and their mothers in a non-goitrous area of Myanmar. The mean +/- SEM cord serum T4, T3 and TSH levels were 117.47 +/- 1.92 nmol/l, 0.57 +/- 0.02 nmol/l and 6.41 +/- 0.84 mu/ml respectively. The corresponding maternal levels were 146.29 +/- 2.06 nmol/l, 2.33 +/- 0.04 nmol/l and 2.59 +/- 0.17 mu/ml maternal serum T4 and T3 levels were significantly higher than the corresponding cord serum values (p < 0.0001 in both cases) and maternal TSH level was significantly lower than cord level (p < 0.0001). Maternal and cord T4, T3 and TSH levels of premature infants were not significantly different from those of mature infants. Similarly maternal and cord hormonal levels of male infants were not significantly different from those of female infants.