THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SERUM-CHOLESTEROL AND SERUM THYROID-HORMONESIN MALE-PATIENTS WITH SUSPECTED HYPOTHYROIDISM

The relationship between serum cholesterol, thyrotropin, thyroxine and triiodothyronine was investigated in 456 male patients with suspected hypothyroidism. The correlation between serum cholesterol and serum t hyroxine (r = 0.0572) and between serum cholesterol and serum triiodot hyronine (r = 0.1136) were not significant but the correlation between serum cholesterol and TSH (r = 0.0376) was significant (P < 0.001). T he mean serum cholesterol was only significantly increased in the pati ent groups with a serum TSH greater than 20 mU/L. In 26 patients treat ed for hypothyroidism with thyroxine replacement there was a significa nt correlation between the decrease in serum cholesterol and the decre ase in serum TSH (r = 0.5334, P < 0.01) but there was poor correlation between the decrease in cholesterol and either the increase in serum triiodothyronine or the increase in serum thyroxine.