Endocrine Abstracts

Hyperthyroidism in pregnancy should be adequately managed to prevent maternal and fetal complications. The diagnosing of hyperthyroidism in pregnant women is challenged by the physiological alterations in thyroid function tests. Furthermore, the distinction between gestational hyperthyroidism and the hyperthyroidism of Graves’ disease presents a clinical challenge. Graves’ disease is an autoimmune disorder associated with the presence of thyroid stimulating hormone...

Objectives: Maternal hypothyroidism in pregnancy has been proposed to increase the risk of preeclampsia, but uncertainties persist regarding the underlying causal mechanisms. Thus, it remains unclear if an increased risk of preeclampsia in hypothyroid pregnant women is caused by the lack of thyroid hormones or by the thyroid autoimmunity per se.Methods: We performed a national and regional study in the Danish population. The national study was r...

Background: Morbidity and mortality are associated with thyroid hormone levels in populations. This has invited a debate on what is the better parameter for assessment of thyroid function: the controlling hormone thyrotropin (TSH) or peripheral thyroid hormone measurements (thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3)).Aim: To assess the ability of TSH and total T4 (TT4) to discriminate between subtle differences in thyroid function.Me...

Objectives: The Danish population was previously iodine deficient with regional differences, and a mandatory iodine fortification of salt was introduced more than 20 years ago. Despite iodine fortification and frequent use of iodine-containing supplements, the iodine status in Danish pregnant women was insufficient when evaluated in 2012 (median urinary iodine concentration (UIC): 101 µg/l). From July 1, 2019 the authorities implemented a mandatory increase from 13 to 20 ...

Background: Iodine nutrition relies on dietary intake. Marine foods are iodine rich, and they contributed markedly to the iodine intake among populations in Greenland. However, dietary habits are drifting away from the traditional diet dominated by iodine rich marine foods such as seal, whale, and seabirds. This led us to monitor iodine nutrition among populations in Greenland.Methods: Cohort studies were conducted in 1998, 2008, and 2018 including 50-69...

Objectives: Measurement of TSH-receptor antibodies (TRAb) in hyperthyroid, pregnant women is an important tool when distinguishing between the autoimmune Graves’ disease and the physiological gestational hyperthyroidism. Evidence to support a cut-off for TRAb in early pregnancy is needed along with information on the frequency and follow-up of TRAb-positive as opposed to TRAb-negative hyperthyroidism.Methods: Within the North Denmark Region Pregnanc...

Objective: Physiological alterations challenge the assessment of maternal thyroid function in pregnancy. It remains uncertain how the reference ranges vary by week of pregnancy, and how the classification of maternal thyroid disease vary by analytical method and type of thyroid function test.Method: Consecutively collectedserum samples from 6.282 pregnant women in the North Denmark Region, 2011–2013, were used for the measurement of thyrotropin (TS...

Objectives: Hyperthyroidism in pregnant women is a clinical concern, and it is important to surveil any change in the occurrence of hyperthyroidism within the pregnant population specifically, especially when a mandatory iodine fortification (IF) program is implemented as it was in Denmark in the year 2000. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate any change in the use of antithyroid drugs (ATD) for the treatment of hyperthyroidism in Danish pregnant women during a 20-year...

Objectives: Iodine intake affects the risk of thyroid disorders. This study aimed to calculate the overall incidence of thyroid dysfunctions and structural abnormalities in the Faroe Islands and to describe the relation to sex and age.Methods: We performed a nationwide, register-based study covering all 54,000 inhabitants of the Faroe Islands between 2006 and 2018. Cases were identified and classified by thyroid dysfunction using redeemed prescriptions o...

Objectives: One of the risk-based screening criteria for thyroid disease in pregnancy is previous abnormal thyroid function or thyroid autoantibody-positivity. We speculated on the frequency and results of thyroid function testing in women of fertile age as part of routine care before and after a pregnancy.Methods: The North Denmark Region Pregnancy Cohort includes retrospective assessment of thyroid function and thyroid autoantibodies (ADVIA Centaur XPT...