High prevalence of thyroid abnormalities in a Chilean psychiatric outpatient population

The aim of the present study was to establish the prevalence of thyroid dis turbances in patients consulting for panic and mood disorders. These data m ay be relevant because thyroid functional alterations affect the success of treatment in these pathologies. We studied prospectively 268 psychiatric o utpatients (204 females and 64 males) diagnosed by DSM-IV criteria. We excl uded patients with addictive disorders and major medical disease. We measur ed TSH, Free T4 (FT4) and antimicrosomal antibodies (AMA). We diagnosed cla ssical hypothyroidism when the TSH value was >10 mu UI/ml (NV=0.25-4.3) and subclinical hypothyroidism when the TSH value was between 5-10 mu UI/ml. H yperthyroidism was diagnosed when FT4 >1.4 (NV=0.81.4), the TSH suppressed and the radioiodine uptake >20% (NV=5-15). Positive antimicrosomal antibodi es (AMA) titres were >1:100 dilution. Hypothyroidism was diagnosed in 26/26 8 patients (9.7%); 10 cases corresponded to the classical form (38.5%) and 16 cases to the subclinical form (61.5%). Hyperthyroidism was found in 6/26 8 patients (2.2%). Normal thyroid function with positive AMA was found in 2 8/268 patients (10.4%). Hypothyroidism was more common in patients with moo d disorders, and hyperthyroidism in patients with panic disorders. Patients with panic disorder had significant higher levels of FT4. The prevalence o f positive AMA, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism was higher in women than men. We found a high frequency of thyroid abnormalities in a psychiatric o utpatient population. These data suggests that routine evaluation of thyroi d function should be considered in patients consulting for mood and panic d isorders. (J. Endocrinol. Invest. 23: 102-106, 2000) (C)2000, Editrice Kurt is.