Thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer in women with positive thyroid screening in pregnancy: a double-centric, retrospective, cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Thyroid nodules are a common finding in the general population. The primary aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of thyroid nodules and cancer found by ultrasound (US) in women who underwent screening for thyroid dysfunction during pregnancy. DESIGN: A double-centric, retrospective, cohort study. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We searched through medical records, including thyroid ultrasonography, of pregnant women who were positively screened for thyroid disorders (using thyroid-stimulating hormone and thyroid antibodies) from an unselected population ('universal screening group', n = 690) and of women who underwent the testing based on the presence of clinical risk factors defined by American Thyroid Association ('case-finding group', n = 249). RESULTS: Prevalence of benign and malignant thyroid nodules was lower in the 'universal screening group' than in the 'case-finding group' (9.9% vs 17.7%, P= 0.002, and 0.9% vs 7.2%, P< 0.001, respectively). Consistently, the thyroid cancer rate was lower among the nodules in the 'universal screening group' than in the 'case-finding group' (8.1% vs 29.0%, P= 0.003). Ultrasound EU-TIRADS (European Thyroid Imaging and Reporting Data System) category ≥4 had a 95.8% sensitivity for thyroid cancer. In palpable nodules, the prevalence of cancer was significantly higher than in the non-palpable ones (44.0% vs 2.2%, P < 0.001). In a multivariate regression analysis, thyroid nodules were associated with a history of infertility and parity. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to the data from cancer registries, universal screening allowed detecting thyroid cancer in pregnancy three to five times more frequently, but the cancer rate among nodules (8.1%) did not differ from the common population. US had very good sensitivity for thyroid cancer in pregnancy.

The importance of iodine nutrition during pregnancy - clinical aspect.

Iodine is an essential constituent of thyroid hormones. Thyroid hormones regulate brain development, growth and metabolism of the human body. Inadequately low iodine intake and decreased thyroid hormone synthesis can lead to iodine deficiency disorders. The severity of disorders depends not only on the degree of iodine deficiency, but also on the stage of the human development. Many areas of the world, including the Czech Republic, have been affected by natural iodine deficiency and the incidence of iodine deficiency disorders has been historically high. Fortification of food-grade salt was an effective step towards reduction of iodine deficiency impact. Although the Czech Republic has been considered to be an iodine sufficient area since 2004, iodine deficiency is still a threat to subgroups of population with an increased demand for iodine, such as pregnant women and newborns. Moreover, these groups are particularly sensitive to even mild iodine deficiency, because it could permanently affect the cognitive development of the fetus and have a negative effect on the course of pregnancy. Conversely, in other groups of the population steps taken to prevent iodine deficiency diseases may lead to excessive iodine intake with potential risks. It is necessary to control the iodine fortification and regularly monitor the iodine status of the population considering the individual risk groups.

Positive Antithyroid Antibodies and Nonsuppressed TSH Are Associated with Thyroid Cancer: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study.

The relationship between Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) and thyroid cancer (TC) is a controversial topic; it remains unclear if HT acts as a risk factor of TC. The aim of our study was to compare the presence of HT and thyroid function in patients with TC and benign nodules. We analyzed 2571 patients after fine needle aspiration biopsy of thyroid nodule. Totally, 91 patients with primary TC and 182 sex- and age-matched controls were included. Positive antithyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO) and antithyroglobulin (anti-Tg) antibodies were associated with TC (anti-TPO 44% in TC vs. 27% in controls, P = 0.005, anti-TG 35% in TC group vs. 21% in controls, P = 0.018), and the TC group had significantly higher TSH (median 1.88 mIU/l vs. 1.21 mIU/l, P < 0.001). Using multiple logistic regression, positive anti-TPO was identified as an independent risk factor (OR 2.21, P = 0.018), while spontaneously suppressed TSH < 0.5 mIU/l was a protective factor (OR 0.3, P = 0.01) against TC. In conclusion, nodules in subjects with positive antithyroid antibodies could be considered to have a higher risk of malignancy. However, based on our results, it is not possible to declare that TC is triggered by HT.

CXCR3, CCR5, and CRTH2 Chemokine Receptor Expression in Lymphocytes Infiltrating Thyroid Nodules with Coincident Hashimoto's Thyroiditis Obtained by Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy.

Objective. To determine the expression of chemokine receptors in lymphocytes from thyroid nodules and peripheral blood in patients with and without Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT). Patients and Methods. The study included 46 women with thyroid nodules and HT and 60 women with thyroid nodules without HT (controls) who underwent a fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). Expression of chemokine receptors CXCR3, CCR5, and CRTH2 was assessed by flow cytometry in lymphocytes from FNAB samples and from peripheral blood. Results. The percentage of CRTH2+ lymphocytes was higher in nodules with HT in comparison with controls, both in FNAB samples (13.95 versus 6.7%, p = 0.008) and in peripheral blood (6.7 versus 5.13%, p = 0.047), and positively correlated with serum antibodies to thyroid peroxidase (r = 0.243; p = 0.026) and negatively correlated with thyroid volume (r = -0.346; p = 0.008). Lymphocytes from neoplastic nodules showed a higher expression of both CXCR3 and CCR5 than those from hyperplastic ones. Conclusion. Flow cytometry performed in FNAB samples may serve as a good tool in investigation of intrathyroidal expression of immunological parameters. In our study, the CRTH2 expression on thyroid-infiltrating lymphocytes as well as on lymphocytes from peripheral blood was increased in HT as compared to controls.

Association between low levels of Mannan-binding lectin and markers of autoimmune thyroid disease in pregnancy.

Functional deficiency of mannan-binding lectin (MBL) has been associated with adverse pregnancy outcome. Adverse events during pregnancy have also been described in women with autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD), and thyroid hormones have been shown to influence serum levels of MBL. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyse the impact of MBL-deficiency on the outcome of pregnancy in relation to the presence of AITD. Almost one year after delivery, we assessed serum MBL levels and MBL2-genotypes in 212 women positively screened for AITD in pregnancy. In 103 of these women, we could also measure MBL levels in frozen serum samples from the 9-12(th) gestational week, obtaining 96 pairs of MBL values (pregnancy vs. follow-up). As controls, 80 sera of pregnant women screened negatively for AITD were used. MBL2-genotyping was performed using multiplex PCR. Women with thyroid dysfunction and/or thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb) had lower MBL levels during pregnancy than controls, (3275 vs. 5000 ng/ml, p<0.05). The lowest levels were found in women with elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels in the absence of TPOAb (2207 ng/ml; p<0.01 as compared to controls). MBL2 genotype distribution did not differ between subgroups. At a median follow-up period of 17 months (range: 3-78 months) after delivery, median MBL level had decreased further to 1923 ng/ml (p<0.0001) without significant changes in TSH. In an explorative survey, functional MBL-deficiency was neither linked to a history of spontaneous abortion, nor other obstetric complications, severe infections throughout life/pregnancy or antibiotics use in pregnancy. In conclusion, hypothyroidism during pregnancy is associated with decreased MBL levels, and the levels decreased further after delivery.