TITLE:
Serum Level of Thyroid Hormones in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection
AUTHORS:
Mohamed Abdel-Fattah El-Feki, Nilly Helmy Abdalla, Mohamed Ibrahim Atta, Ahmed Amin Ibrahim
KEYWORDS:
Hepatitis C Virus, Thyroid Hormones, Liver Cirrhosis
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases,
Vol.6 No.3,
March
23,
2016
ABSTRACT: Objective: There are
clinical and laboratory associations between thyroid and liver diseases.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is known to be responsible for both hepatic and
extrahepatic diseases. The most frequent and clinically important endocrine
extrahepatic diseases are thyroid disorders and type 2 diabetes mellitus. We
aim to study the relationship between the serum level of thyroid
hormones (THs) and the severity of liver disease in patients with chronic
hepatitis C virus (CHC) infection. Methods: 60 patients with CHC infection were
selected for the study. They were divided into two groups: with or without
liver cirrhosis. Those with liver cirrhosis were further subdivided according
to the Child-Turcotte-Pugh scoring system. Serum levels of free T3 (FT3), free
T4 (FT4) and TSH were measured to all patients. Results: There was decrease in
the FT3 and FT4 levels and increase in the TSH levels in patients with CHC with
cirrhosis when compared to patients with CHC without cirrhosis. Conclusion:
Thyroid profile abnormalities were seen in cirrhotic HCV patients when compared
to non-cirrhotic patients. The abnormalities in the serum level of
THs (decreased FT3, FT4, and increased TSH) are strongly associated with the
severity of liver damage and advancing of the child score.