PREVALENCE OF HYPOTHYROIDISM AMONG ELDERLIES FROM TAUBATÉ, SP

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of hypothyroidism among elderlies aged over 60 years from the city of Taubaté, SP, Brazil. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in which we collected information on blood sample results from 200 subjects randomly selected from a private laboratory. The study subjects were selected by rotation among the eligible patients, being both males and females aged over 60 years, living in the city of Taubaté, SP, from June 1st to October 30th 2014. The IMMULITE – SIEMENS device was used, along with the following SIEMENS kits: Free T4 kit – Immulite Free T4, which is a chemoluminescent competitive immune-assay. Reference values: 0.89 to 1.76 (ng/dL); and the TSH kit – Immulite TSH, which is based on an immune-assay. Reference values: 0.4 to 4 uIU/mL. The results of TSH above the reference value and of the free T4 below the reference value were considered as indicatives of clinical hypothyroidism. Results: The prevalence of hypothyroidism was found to be 26.5% (53 subjects), of which 73.58% (39 subjects) showed subclinical hypothyroidism and 28.30% (14 subjects) showed clinical hypothyroidism. The incidence of subclinical and clinical hypothyroidism in women was 52.83% and 16.98%, respectively. In men, the incidence of subclinical hypothyroidism was 20.75%, while clinical hypothyroidism accounted for 9.43% of the cases. Conclusion: Our findings showed a high prevalence of hypothyroidism in the studied sample. DESCRIPTORS Diagnosis. Hypothyroidism. Aged.