Screening of an Elderly Female Population for Hypo‐ and Hyperthyroidism by Use of a Thyroid Hormone Panel

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Abstract
The elderly female population living in a rural primary health care district in the south of Sweden was screened for hypo‐ and hyperthyroidism. A total of 1 442 (97.3 %) of the 1 482 women 60 years of age or older attended the study. By use of a computer‐evaluated thyroid hormone panel, 178 women (12.3%) were identified as probably abnormal. Among them, 8 women (0.55% of total) with previously unknown thyroid disease were detected as overtly hypothyroid. If also 13 women with spontaneous subclinical hypothyroidism were included, the prevalence of earlier unknown hypothyroidism was 21/1 442 (1.5%). The number of subjects with hyperthyroidism discovered by screening was 28/1 442 (1.9%). Although much remains to be elucidated regarding medical, social and economic factors, the high figures obtained for newly discovered abnormal thyroid function suggest that screening for hyper‐ and hypothyroidism may be worthwhile in such an elderly female population.

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