title: Use of a single TSH-measurement after oral thyrotrophin releasing hormone: an economical and highly sensitive thyroid screening test.
abstract: The increment of serum TSH after thyrotrophin-releasing hormone (TRH) is usually considered an extremely sensitive thyroid test, particularly useful in borderline disturbances. We evaluated 195 patients by measuring serum TSH before and 3 h after 40 mg TRH po, and by various other thyroid tests. We found a very tight correlation between the TSH- increment and the 3 h TSH. Thus the TSH-increment can reliably be estimated from the 3 h TSH. The mann-Whitney test confirmed that the 3 h TSH identified thyroid dysfunction as well as the TSH-increment. The basal TSH can therefore be omitted and we propose the measurement of the 3 h TSH as an initial screening test. This single measurement economically excludes the many euthyroid patients sent for thyroid evaluation from further costly tests.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006980:Hyperthyroidism / Q000175:diagnosis; D007037:Hypothyroidism / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D013960:Thyroid Function Tests; D013972:Thyrotropin / Q000097:blood*; D013973:Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone; D014284:Triiodothyronine
chemical_list: D014284:Triiodothyronine; D013973:Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone; D013972:Thyrotropin