title: High prevalence of asymptomatic hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism in hospitalized elderly females.
abstract: To investigate the prevalence of asymptomatic hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism in hospitalized people, we performed thyroid function tests on a group of 2545 elderly patients consecutively observed in a General Hospital in Rome, during a six year period. The rate of asymptomatic hypothyroidism was as high as 0.71% in female patients and only 0.20% in male patients. In asymptomatic hyperthyroid subjects the prevalence rate was 0.58% in females and 0.20% in males. On the whole, prevalence rate of asymptomatic thyropathies resulted 0.94%, showing a clear difference in sex (women 1.29% and men 0.40%). The asymptomatic thyropathies screening of hospitalized elderly women may result in a very low cost diagnosis of many new cases of hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism.
authors.affiliation: Azienda Ospedaliera S. Filippo Neri, III Divisione di Medicina, Roma, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Potestà
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Murolo
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Costantini
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Imperoli
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Giardina
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Guerriero
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De Meo
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Casalli
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006980:Hyperthyroidism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D007037:Hypothyroidism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D013963:Thyroid Hormones