Role of Inflammatory Cytokines in Patients wi...

Role of Inflammatory Cytokines in Patients with Overt Hypothyroidism

Author Name : Rimita Kundu

ABSTRACT

Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the body lacks sufficient thyroid hormone. 'subclinical hypothyroidism' is used to define that grade of primary hypothyroidism in which there is an elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration in the presence of normal serum free thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) concentrations. Subclinical hypothyroidism may progress to overt hypothyroidism in approximately 2-5% cases annually. All patients with Overt hypothyroidism and subclinical hypothyroidism with TSH >10 mIU/L should be treated. Overt hypothyroidism is characterized by elevated TSH and lower levels of fT4 and fT3 and in most cases is associated with clinical symptoms or in rare cases may not show any signs and symptoms. Overt hypothyroidism is linked with an increased risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular morbidity. It is one of the main causes of abnormal lipid metabolism (Dyslipidemia). Patients with overt hypothyroidism are at risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and atherosclerosis. Lipid abnormalities in overt hypothyroidism include elevated total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglycerides (TG). Overt Hypothyroidism (OH) is recognized risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, a chronic inflammatory process. A growing number of studies have examined inflammatory markers as predictors of recurrent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and death in different settings.CVD is the biggest killer globally and the principal contributing factor to the pathology is atherosclerosis; a chronic, inflammatory disorder characterized by lipid and cholesterol accumulation and the development of fibrotic plaques within the walls of large and medium arteries. Secondly, the chronic vascular inflammatory process has a fundamental relationship with endothelial capacity to produce pro inflammatory cytokines, factors and adhesion molecules. However, few studies has been investigating the potential link between hypothyroid dysfunction and inflammation.