Prevalence of anti-TSH receptor antibody high in fibromyalgia
(HealthDay)—Patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) have high prevalence of anti-thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) receptor antibody (TRAb), according to a study published online Nov. 30 in the International Journal of Rheumatic Diseases.
Kenya Nishioka, M.D., Ph.D., from the Juntendo University Graduate School of Medicine in Tokyo, and colleagues tested for titers of free tri-iodothyronine, free thyroxine, TSH, anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), anti-thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb), and TRAb in 207 patients with FMS. Twenty-five patients with subclinical hyper- or hypothyroidism, or overt hypothyroidism were excluded.
The researchers identified 69 patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD; 37.9 percent). The prevalence of positivity for TRAb was 20.3 percent, TgAb was 16.5 percent, and TPOAb was 13.2 percent. The prevalence of TRAb positivity was high compared to control populations in previous studies, and TRAb titers were low. Compared with previous studies reporting on FMS patients, the prevalence of TPOAb and TgAb positivity were not significantly higher. Identical clinical symptom profiles were seen for FMS patients with and without AITD.
"We found a high prevalence of AITD among 207 patients with clinically defined FMS, with TRAb being especially prominent among these patients," the authors write. "Further study is needed to evaluate changes in thyroid function among FMS patients with AITD."
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