Labs: elevated serum TSH and normal T4 or free T4 concentration (and no symptoms)
Treatment: individualized / replacement recommended with TSH > 10 or > 5 with goiter or thyroid antibodies / otherwise, can just wait and see
Course: does not always lead to primary hypothyroidism / women with increased TSH and thyroid Ab’s have 5% annual incidence of overt hypothyroidism / those pts over 65 yrs with both findings usu. develop hypothyroidism within 4 yrs / euthyroidism with reset thyrostat may not progress to hypothyroidism (probably from subtle insult to thyroid gland)
Hypothyroidism of pregnancy
1-2% incidence of hypothyroidism in young women / hypothyroidism causes impaired cognitive development and increased pregnancy causes increase in levothyroxine requirement by 5th week gestation / recommendation is increase replacement dose by 30% at start of pregnancy and adjust based on TFT’s thereafter
Thyroiditis
I123 uptake usually decreased
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
autoimmune disease / most common cause of hypothyroid in US / may have non-tender goiter (rubbery with scalloped borders) / can check for anti-microsomal Ab’s (also called anti-thyroperoxidase or TPO) / Pathology: Hurthle cells
Subacute granulomatous thyroiditis (DeQuervrain’s)
Presentation: pain, tenderness, symptoms of hyperthyroid (usu. takes about 6-8 weeks to achieve spontaneous remission) / often associated with viral illness (URI, etc.)
Diagnosis: clinical and/or I123 scan
Findings: increased free T4 or FTI but decreased I-123 uptake because of the follicular cells’ inability to concentrate iodine
Treatment: treat symptoms (NSAIDs, B-blockers, may need steroids) / PTU/M not effective
Subacute lymphocytic thyroiditis
common post-partum / unknown etiology / painless
Riedel’s thyroiditis (Struma)
unknown etiology / can compress neck structures and/or cause hypothyroidism / fibrosis of gland / PET-scan may be useful in diagnosis
Medications: amiodarone-induce (side effect), iodine or T4 (factitious or overdose)
Other causes: TSH-secreting pituitary adenoma, hydatidiform moles, choriocarcinomas (hCG secretion), ovarian teratomas, metastatic follicular thyroid carcinomas
Thyroid Neoplasms (thyroid nodules)
Common, occur in 5% of adults
Presentation: nodules usually painless unless they ulcerate or compress other things
Diagnosis: if incidentally discovered by imaging, small (< 1 cm), normal TSH, asymptomatic, no h/o radiation or thyroid cancer, can watch and re-evaluate in 6 months, otherwise…
I-123 radioactive uptake scan (cold has 5-10% chance of malignancy probably need to do FNA (15% will be suspicious and require surgical evaluation) / ultrasound shows cystic or solid (but still probably will need FNA or Bx) / pentagastrin test for medullary carcinoma
Ddx: follicular adenoma, multinodular goiter, colloid nodule, Hashimoto’s, cyst, lymphoma, mets, parathyroid
90% of all thyroid nodules benign (incidental, < 1 cm even more likely benign)
nodules increase with age (younger patient means increased chance of malignancy)
nodules usually cold (do not take iodine)
Treatment: Iodide may be used to decrease vascularity (pre-op for thyroid resection) / excision +/- lymph node dissection / if thyroid completely removed, then lifelong exogenous T4 to suppress TSH production (keep TSH at barely detectable levels) / follow-up I-123 uptake scan to ensure no active thyroid tissue present
Complications of surgery: 50% becoming hypothyroid (complications: recurrent and superior laryngeal nerve paralysis, recurrence and hypoparathyroid), may have to remove hyoid to remove all accessory tissue
Follicular adenoma
encapsulated / usually euthyroid / Treatment: as above
Thyroid Carcinomas
Papillary carcinoma - good prognosis
1st in U.S. / indolent (slow growth), +/- bilateral
Pathology: ground-glass nuclei, longitudinal nuclei, psammoma bodies
lymphatic spread / previous irradiation gives a 2-fold higher risk
Exam: may have lymphadenopathy (mets), even with normal thyroid palpation
Follicular carcinoma - bad prognosis
2nd in U.S. / vascular spread (brain, bone, etc) / middle aged women / may mimic follicular adenoma
Medullary carcinoma - bad prognosis
3rd in U.S. / lymphatic spread / bilateral / parafollicular C-cells / secrete calcitonin / FH of disease is better / isolated or as part of MEN II and III
Undifferentiated (anaplastic) - extremely bad prognosis
radiation + chemotherapy is only palliative
Parathyroid
Physiology
Total serum calcium 9 mg/dl – bound to proteins (albumin) and PO4 / regulated indirectly
Ionized serum calcium 4.5 mg/dl – regulated directly
PTH increases bone resorption (osteoclast activation)
increases serum calcium
lowers fractional reabsorption of PO4 from kidney (normally set at 80-90%)
increases formation of 1,25-OH – increases Ca and PO4 absorption in GI
increases urinary cAMP
Vitamin D
causes GI absorption of PO4, Ca and increased renal PO4 and Ca reabsorption, and lowers PTH
Vitamin D deficiency
occurs in 25% of elderly / affects seen in children more acutely due to lower calcium stores in bones/ may cause lowered Ca and PO4 leading to secondary hyper PTH
Reasons: lower intake, lack of sun exposure, direct renal damage (conversion enzymes), anticonvulsants (increased inactivation)
Labs: 25-OH – 1000 fold higher than 1,25-OH – useful to measure vitamin D deficiency
1,25-OH – useful for diagnosis hypercalcemia caused by secretory tumor
Treatment: 1000-2000 vitamin D / 1 to 1.5 g Ca supplement
Calcitonin increases renal excretion of calcium / increases bone formation
[more like an escape mechanism / not a primary regulator of serum calcium]
PTHrP protein functions identically to PTH causing hypercalcemia / can be measured directly by lab
Hyperparathyroidism (other causes of hypercalcemia)
Not uncommon (3 in 1000 middle-age women) / female 2x > male (usually after puberty)
Causes: primary adenoma (90%), secondary adenoma, carcinoma, MEN I (10%)
Increased PTH: pancreatitis, nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcinosis, gout, pseudogout, HTN, PUD
Presentation: can present in hypercalcemic crisis
Bones: renal stones, UTI, renal failure, nephrocalcinosis (less common)
Stones: aches, arthralgias, pseudogout
Abdominal groans: dehydration, constipation, pancreatitis, PUD (CA stimulates gastrin secretion), nausea, vomiting
Psychic overtones: anorexia, personality changes, polyuria/polydipsia
Fatigue: muscle fatigue or atrophy, lassitude
Labs:
Hypercalcemia
Hypercalciuria only seen in 2/3 of cases
Alk phos only ↑ with significant bone disease
serum chloride ↑ due to PTH-induced bicarbonaturia (more consistent finding than hypophosphatemia)
Parathyroid hyperplasia
chief cell - solid area of chief cells, reduced fat
clear cell - uniform distribution of clear cells, reduced fat
Parathyroid adenoma
common, 80% parathyroid neoplasms / chief cells (no fat within capsule) / surrounded by normal or atrophic gland, fat cells / usually secretes PTH (hypercalemia)
Exam: rarely find palpable neck mass / brown tumors (osteoclasts clump in bone causing focal swelling)
Diagnosis: U/S, CT, thallium, venous sampling / radiography is positive in 60-80% of cases / selective venous catheterization and PTH detection is second line
Ddx: ectopic PTH, sarcoid, milk alkali, HCTZ, vitamin D/A overdose, hyperthyroid
multiple myeloma, Paget’s, Addisonian crisis, familial HH?
Treatment: resection for hyperplasia (leave ½ of 1 gland) / adenoma (remove only 1 gland) / can cause ‘hungry bones’ phenomenon (hypocalcemia) – perioral numbness, Chvostek’s, seizures / 5% recur (can re-operate)
Parathyroid carcinoma
rare / invasive / squamous / mets to lung, head/neck, kidney, ovary
As part of multiple endocrine neoplasia (see other)
Secondary hyperparathyroidism (renal osteodystrophy)
CRF ↑ serum PO4 CaPO4 deposition ↓ serum Ca ↑ PTH release
↓ vitamin D-1-25-OH (due to renal failure) ↓ serum Ca ↑ PTH release
Complications: osteodystrophy, myopathy, can get severe muscle atrophy
Treatment: vitamin D supplementation, ↓ PO4 intake, PO4 binders (calcium carbonate)
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