title: [Clinico-ultrasonographic assessment of the thyroid volume and function in chronic enteritis and colitis: preliminary data].
abstract: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) have frequent extraintestinal (hepatobiliary, cutaneous, ocular, articular, urinary) complications. On the contrary, no data are available about possible thyroid involvement. We studied thyroid morphology and function in 39 patients affected with active IBD (13 UC; 26 CD) before (all) and 45 and 90 days after onset of therapy (21/39), and in 55 normal control subjects. Every time, the following exams were performed: thyroid US (parenchymal assessment, thyroid volume calculation), hormone and immunologic assays (T3, T4, FT3, FT4, TSH; antithyroglobulin and antithyroid microsomal/peroxidase antibodies). A statistically significant increase in thyroid volume was found in IBD (mean: 22.1 ml) compared to control subjects (mean: 15.6 ml), more frequently in CD (18/26 patients; 69.2%) than in UC (2/13 patients; 15.4%). Parenchymal structure was inhomogeneous in the two groups of patients (88.4% CD; 15.4% UC) more frequently than in control subjects (12.7%). Hormone assays demonstrated increased FT4 values in UC (9/13 patients; 69.2%) and decreased T4 values in CD (14/26 patients; 53.8%). IBD patients increased frequency of antithyroglobulin and antithyroid microsomal/peroxidase antibodies. Such abnormalities subsided only partially after therapy. Our data suggest that in IBD there is a frequent thyroid involvement with morphological, hormone, and immunologic abnormalities.
authors.affiliation: Servizio di Diagnostica per Immagini, Ospedale S. Sebastiano M., Azienda RM/H, Frascati, Roma.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gimondo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mirk
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pizzi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Messina
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gimondo
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Iafrancesco
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013959:Thyroid Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013961:Thyroid Gland / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000097:blood; D014463:Ultrasonography
chemical_list: D013963:Thyroid Hormones
vernacular_title: Valutazione clinico-ecografica del volume e della funzione tiroidea nelle enteriti e coliti croniche: dati preliminari.