[A case report of Refetoff's syndrome].
An 11-year-old girl with diffuse goiter is presented. She had no clinical evidence of thyrotoxic symptoms or signs of palpitation, excessive sweating, tachycardia or finger tremor. Both the serum T4 (24.0 micrograms/dl) and T3 (282ng/dl) were high, and thyroid 131I uptake rate (63.2%) was significantly elevated, but T3/T4 ratio was not elevated (11.8). BMR was measured three times and remained within normal limits. Her serum TSH was 1.9 microU/ml, and a TRH stimulation test resulted in a normal rise of serum TSH (13.4 microU/ml). The TSH secretion was not suppressed by medication (p.o.) of 75 micrograms of L-triiodothyronine given for 8 days. The autoantibodies of T4, T3 and TSH were negative. No sign of pituitary tumor was observed by plain X-ray film. No defect in her sight-field was found. From these clinical figures and data, Refetoff's syndrome was suspected. She was eumetabolic without any treatment, but the goiter gradually enlarged and dysphagia developed. A large dose of L-thyroxine (450 micrograms/day) was given for a period of one year and four months. She has been eumetabolic. Her goiter disappeared and the dysphagia completely subsided. After she was given large doses of L-T4, her serum TSH was reduced to 0.07 microU/ml and was slightly elevated to 0.24 microU/ml at 30 min after i.v. infusion of 500 micrograms TRH. Thyroid 123I uptake rate was suppressed to 8.3%. According to Refetoff's papers, this case was classified as being in the group with generalized resistance to thyroid hormone.
Sasaki
J
J
First Department of Surgery, Iwate Medical University, Morioka, Japan.
Tada
T
T
Saito
K
K
Kurihara
H
H
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006042:Goiter / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D013577:Syndrome; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000502:physiology*
D013963:Thyroid Hormones