Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) is the commonest cause of spontaneous hypothyroidism. We compared clinico-investigative profile between child HT vs adult HT.

Material and methods: The study was conducted in Endocrine surgery department in a teritiary care hospital. The data was analyzed seperately for Group A: child HT (below 18 years) and Group B: adult (above 30 years).

Results: The study period was 30 months (October 2009–March 2012) with minimum follow-up of 10 months. Subjects included 95 child HT and 85 adult HT cases. 22/85 (26%) adult HT cases, required thyroidectomy for dominant nodule, pressure symptoms, etc. Cervical lymphadenopathy, diffuse goiter, painful thyroiditis rates were higher in children. Hypothyroidism in 26% of Group A compared to 4% in Group B was self-limiting

Conclusions: Significant differences in the clinical profile and natural history between child HT and adult HT seems to distinguish them as separate entities.

Keywords: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis; Goiter; Hypothyroidism; Thyroidectomy.