Table 1.
Clinical, laboratory and imaging features of the entire cohort of SAT patients (n = 198) evaluated in the years 2016-2020
| Study population (N = 198) | Results |
|---|---|
| Sex | |
| - Female (%) | 167 (84) |
| - Male (%) | 31 (16) |
| Mean age (SD) | 44.6 (±12) |
| Patients with respiratory symptoms prior to SAT onset (%) | 56 (28) |
| Median time from respiratory symptoms to SAT (IQR) | 30 (28-45) |
| Patients with bilateral neck pain (%) | 48 (24) |
| Patients with fever (%) | 145 (73) |
| Laboratory and imaging findings | |
| FT4 (IQR) | 24.3 (4.6) |
| FT3 (IQR) | 5.8 (1.7) |
| FT4/FT3 (IQR) | 4.3 (1.2) |
| TSH (IQR) | 0.1 (0.2) |
| ESR (IQR) | 43 (45) |
| CRP (IQR) | 3.8 (2.2) |
| Tga (IQR) | 69 (70) |
| Patients with positive TgAbs (%) | 62 (31) |
| - Median titer (IQR) | 65 (52) |
| Patients with positive TPOAbs (%) | 27 (14) |
| - Median titer (IQR) | 35 (65) |
| Thyroid volume (IQR) | 22.3 (6) |
| Scintigraphy | |
| - Absent/reduced uptake | 54 |
| - Normal uptake | 0 |
| - Not available | 144 |
| Treatment and follow-up | |
| Type of treatment (%) | |
| - Steroids | 175 (89) |
| - NSAIDs | 15 (7) |
| - None | 8 (4) |
| Median duration of steroid treatment (days) (IQR) | 90 (40) |
| Hypothyroidism at 3 monthsb (%) | 57 (29) |
| SARS-CoV-2 status (year 2020) | |
| - pos-SARS-CoV-2 (%) | 18 (39) |
| - neg-SARS-CoV-2 (%) | 28 (61) |
Normal ranges: FT4 6-16 nmol/L; FT3 2.3-4.2 pmol/L; TSH 0.4-4.5 mIU/L; ESR < 15 mm/h; CRP < 1.5 mg/L; Tg < 35 µg/L; TgAbs < 30 IU/mL (positive cutoff); TPOAbs < 10 IU/mL (positive cutoff).
Abbreviations: CRP, C-reactive protein; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; FT3, free triiodothyronine; FT4, free thyroxine; IQR, interquartile range; NSAIDs, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; SARS-CoV-2: severe acute respiratory syndrome virus 2; SAT, subacute thyroiditis; Tg, thyroglobulin; TgAbs, thyroglobulin antibodies; TPOAbs, thyroid peroxidase antibodies.
aMeasured in patients with TgAbs < 9.3 IU/mL (interfering cutoff).
bEvaluated in 182 subjects with a minimum follow-up of 3 months.