Table I.
Comparison of measurements between SH patients with non-treated (SH-T0) and treated with levothyroxine (SH-T1)
| Parameter | SH (n = 130) Mean ± SD (range) |
SH-T0 (n = 35) Mean ±SD (range) |
SH-T1 (n = 95) Mean ±SD (range) |
p-value (* significance between SH-T0 and SH-T1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F, n(%) | 76 (58.5) | 22 (62.9) | 54 (56.8) | 0.851 |
| Age at baseline (years) | 9.5 ±3.1 (3.3–15.1) | 9.2 ±3.0 (3.5–15.1) | 9.5 ±3.2 (3.1–15.1) | 0.619 |
| Age at end of FU (years) | 12.7 ±3.3 (5.5–18.0) | 12.0 ±3.7 (5.5–18.0) | 12.7 ±3.5 (5.8–18.0) | 0.327 |
| Length of FU (months) | 38.3 ±16.6 (24.0–99.3) | 37.3 ±15.4 (24.0–78.0) | 38.5 ±17.3 (24.0–99.3) | 0.157 |
| TSH (mIU/ml) at baseline | 6.3 ±3.2 (4.0–25.2) | 5.7 ±1.7 (4.1–9.4) | 6.6 ±4.0 (4.0–25.2) | 0.440 |
| TSH (mIU/ml) at the end of FU | 3.8 ±1.9 (1.1–13.3) | 4.2 ±1.4 (1.2–8.0) | 3.7 ±2.2 (1.0–13.3) | 0.006* |
| fT4 (ng/dl) at baseline | 1.2 ±0.2 (0.8–1.7) | 1.2 ±0.2 (1.0–1.6) | 1.2 ±0.3 (0.8–1.7) | 0.432 |
| fT4 (ng/dl) at the end of FU | 1.2 ±0.02 (0.8–1.8) | 1.2 ±0.2 (0.9–1.5) | 1.3 ±0.2 (0.7–1.8) | 0.053 |
| Positive family history, n(%) | 48 (36.9) | 18 (60.0) | 30 (31.6) | 0.671 |
SH – subclinical hypothyroidism; SH-T0 – patients with subclinical hypothyroidism without treatment; SH-T1 – patients with subclinical hypothyroidism treated with levothyroxine; N-number; FU – follow-up; TSH – thyroid-stimulating hormone; fT4 – free thyroxine