Comparison Among the Daily Levothyroxine Doses According to the Etiology of Hypothyroidism

Josivan Gomes de Lima, Deciara Jacome Torres Medeiros de Mesquita, Flavia da Costa Fernandes, Alexandre Barbosa Camara de Souza, Antonio Correia dos Santos Junior, Bartira Reboucas, Natalia Nobrega de Lima, Andre Gustavo P. Sousa, Lucia Helena Coelho Nobrega

Abstract


Background: The initial doses of levothyroxine (LT4) replacement therapy in patients with hypothyroidism in clinical practice are usually empirical, perhaps because of the lack of data suggesting how much hormone is needed in each patients situation. The aim of our study is to evaluate the daily dose of oral LT4 needed to achieve the TSH goals in patients with hypothyroidism caused by different etiologies.

Methods: Patients were divided and analyzed according to the etiology of the hypothyroidism. We retrospectively evaluated data from 557 patients (501 women) with hypothyroidism who had normal serum TSH and free T4 (FT4) levels in at least two consecutive appointments in which they were using the same levothyroxine doses.

Results: The mean dose of levothyroxine in the total sample was 91.3 37.18 g/day (1.39 0.63 g/kg/day). Stratifying by group: central hypothyroidism 53.94 28.07 g/day (0.82 0.48 g/kg/day); primary hypothyroidism (no intervention) 81.37 29.84 g/day (1.25 0.53 g/kg-day); post radioactive iodine (I131) 97.42 28.32 g/day (1.33 0.55 g/kg/day); post-thyroidectomy for benign causes 102.8 36.96 g/day (1.54 0.59 g/kg/day); post-thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer 138.5 35.25 g/day (2.17 0.58 g/kg/day).

Conclusion: The dose of LT4 required to stabilize the patient varies according to different hypothyroidism etiologies.




J Endocrinol Metab. 2013;3(1-2):1-6
doi: https://doi.org/10.4021/jem165w


Keywords


Levothyroxine; Primary hypothyroidism; Thyroidectomy; Radioactive iodine; Central hypothyroidism

Full Text: HTML PDF
 

Browse  Journals  

 

Journal of Clinical Medicine Research

Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism

Journal of Clinical Gynecology and Obstetrics

 

World Journal of Oncology

Gastroenterology Research

Journal of Hematology

 

Journal of Medical Cases

Journal of Current Surgery

Clinical Infection and Immunity

 

Cardiology Research

World Journal of Nephrology and Urology

Cellular and Molecular Medicine Research

 

Journal of Neurology Research

International Journal of Clinical Pediatrics

 

 
       
 

Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, bimonthly, ISSN 1923-2861 (print), 1923-287X (online), published by Elmer Press Inc.                     
The content of this site is intended for health care professionals.
This is an open-access journal distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted
non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Creative Commons Attribution license (Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International CC-BY-NC 4.0)


This journal follows the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals,
the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines, and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing.

website: www.jofem.org   editorial contact: editor@jofem.org    elmer.editorial2@hotmail.com
Address: 9225 Leslie Street, Suite 201, Richmond Hill, Ontario, L4B 3H6, Canada

© Elmer Press Inc. All Rights Reserved.


Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the published articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the editors and Elmer Press Inc. This website is provided for medical research and informational purposes only and does not constitute any medical advice or professional services. The information provided in this journal should not be used for diagnosis and treatment, those seeking medical advice should always consult with a licensed physician.