Clinical Features of COVID-19 Patients with Preexisting Hypothyroidism: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

Background and objectives: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been reported to be more severe and highly fatal in patients with co-morbidities. Thyroid dysfunction leads to multisystem derangements, as thyroid hormones have major role in the development and functioning of all the human cells. The present study evaluated the variation in the clinical and biochemical parameters of COVID-19 patients with preexisting hypothyroidism. Methods: This retrospective cohort study was carried out on eight COVID-19 patients with hypothyroidism who were admitted to a tertiary care hospital in Mangalore, India. Various clinical and biochemical parameters of the patients were recorded. Results: Out of eight patients, three were men and five were women. With respect to other co-morbidities, six patients had associated type-2 diabetes mellitus and the remaining two patients had no other co-morbidities apart from hypothyroidism. Regarding the severity of COVID-19, one patient had mild symptoms, two had moderate symptoms, and the remaining five patients had severe COVID-19 symptoms. Most biochemical and hematological parameters in all patients were deranged from normal values. Moreover, only 25% of the patients recovered from the disease. Conclusion: Most COVID-19 patients with hypothyroidism had low oxygen saturation and high level of inflammatory markers. In addition, the risk of mortality in COVID-19 patients with hypothyroidism and type 2 diabetes mellitus was higher compared to patients with hypothyroidism alone. It is recommended to closely monitor COVID-19 patients with hypothyroidism and limit the use of steroids during the course of treatment.

Keywords

• hypothyroidism
• covid-19
• biomarkers