Prevalence of Thyroid Dysfunction in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study
January 2020
in “
Indian Journal of Rheumatology
”
TLDR 42% of SLE patients had thyroid issues, mostly hypothyroidism.
The study investigated the prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in 100 Indian patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and found that 50% had thyroid dysfunction, with hypothyroidism being the most common (30% clinical and 12% subclinical). Elevated anti-thyroid peroxidase (TPO) antibodies were present in 25% of the patients. Fatigue, hair loss, and joint pain were the predominant symptoms. The study emphasized the importance of including thyroid function and TPO antibody tests in the routine evaluation of SLE patients due to overlapping clinical manifestations and recommended further research with larger populations to confirm these findings.