Table 3.
Diagnostics and laboratory investigations of COVID-19-associated subacute thyroiditis (review of case reports)
| Author, year | COVID-19 diagnosis | Chest X-ray/CT chest | Thyroid ultrasound/imaging | ESR (mm/h) | CRP (mg/L) | Baseline lab values | TFTs | Thyroid antibodies (TgAb, TPOAb, and TRAb) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asfuroglu Kalkan, 2020 | RT-PCR | Normal | Relative diffuse decrease of vascularity and heterogeneous parenchyma | 134 | 101 | WBCs elevated |
TSH (low) FT3 (high) FT4 (high) |
Negative |
| Mattar, 2020 | RT-PCR | Normal | Enlarged thyroid gland with heterogeneous echotexture | - | 11.3 | Normal except mildly elevated WBC count after tachycardia onset |
TSH (low) FT4 (high) FT3 (high) |
Negative |
| Campos-Barrera, 2020 | RT-PCR | - | Thyroid iodine scan showed no radioactive iodine uptake | 72 | 66 | Anemia (Hb10.4 g/dL), normal platelet and WBCs |
TSH undetectable FT4 (high) |
Negative |
| Ippolito, 2020 | RT-PCR | Bilateral ground-glass areas | Enlarged hypoechoic thyroid with decreased vascularity on U/S, no uptake on radioiodine scan | - | - | - |
TSH (low) FT4 (high) FT3 (high) |
Negative |
| Khatri, 2020 | RT-PCR | Normal | Heterogeneous thyroid gland with bilateral patchy ill-defined hypoechoic areas | 107 | 36.4 | Anemia (Hb 9.1 g/dL), normal platelet and WBCs | TSH (low) | TPOAb + |
| Maris, 2020 | RT-PCR | Right lower lobe pneumonia | Slightly enlarged right thyroid lobe, with ill-defined hypoechogenicity and normal vascularity in both lobes | - | 50.9 |
TSH (low) FT4 (normal) Total T3 (normal) |
Negative | |
| Guven, 2020 | RT-PCR | The right lung, upper lobe and lower lobe, superior segment reticulonodular density increases, ground glass opacities | Parenchyma is characterized by heterogeneous, patchy infiltrations, and hypoechoic areas observed in both thyroid lobes | 80 | 76.9 | Elevated WBCs, high neutrophils, low Hb |
TSH (low) FT4 (high) FT3 (normal) |
Negative |
| Chong, 2020 | RT-PCR | - | Diffusely heterogeneous echotexture | 31 | 14 | Normal |
TSH (low) FT4 (high) Total T3 (high) |
Negative |
| Brancatella, 2020 | RT-PCR | - | Multiple diffuse hypoechoic areas | 90 | 101 | WBCs mildly elevated |
TSH (low) FT4 (high) FT3(high) Tg: detected (low level) |
TgAb + |
| Ruggeri, 2020 | IgM and IgG SARS-CoV-2 | Normal | Diffusely enlarged and hypoechogenic thyroid gland; thyroid scintigraphy showed markedly reduced 99mTc-perthecnetate uptake in the gland | - | - | - |
TSH (low) FT3 (high) FT4(high) Tg (high), |
Negative |
| Chakraborty, 2020 | RT-PCR | - | Diffuse bilateral enlargement of thyroid with hypoechogenicity and increased vascularity on color Doppler and a solitary nodule in each lobe; poor and patchy radiotracer uptake on radionuclide thyroid scan with technetium-99m | 110 | 16.6 | Normal |
TSH (low) Serum T3 (high) Serum T4 (high) |
Negative |
ESR erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CRP C-reactive protein, WBCs white blood cells, TFTs thyroid function tests, Tg thyroglobulin, FT3 free T3, FT4 free T4, TgAb thyroglobulin autoantibodies, TPOAb thyroid peroxidase antibody, TRAb TSH receptor antibody, (-) data not reported