Study on Correlation between Lipid Accumulation Product and Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Levels in Hypothyroidism

Abstract

Introduction: Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is one of the established causes of mortality and morbidity in hypothyroid patients. A predictor of cardiovascular risk in hypothyroid patients becomes essential to prevent the occurrence of cardiac event. One such prognosticator of CVD is the Lipid Accumulation Product (LAP). Aim: To compare the trend of LAP scores in hypothyroid patients with that of healthy controls. Materials and Methods: After obtaining approval from the Ethics Committee, this cross-sectional study was conducted. After obtaining written informed consent, details such as age, gender, waist circumference, serum Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH), and serum triglyceride levels were collected. LAP was calculated among study participants as follows: LAP for men={Waist circumference (cm)-65}×{Triglyceride concentration (mmol/L)}. LAP for women={Waist circumference (cm)-58}×{Triglyceride concentration (mmol/L)}. Statistical analysis was performed with Microsoft excel and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 24.0 for Windows. Results: The total number of participants were 118 among which 59 (50%) were hypothyroid cases and 59 (50%) were healthy controls. The two groups had statistically significant difference in their LAP scores. The mean LAP score among cases and controls was 38.6±15.6 cm.mmol/L and 30.9±13.2 cm.mmol/L, respectively with a p-value of 0.004. The LAP scores showed positive correlation with TSH levels with r-value of 0.784 and p-value <0.001 by Pearson’s correlation. Conclusion: The study concludes that there is a significant correlation between LAP score and TSH levels and LAP scores are significantly higher in hypothyroid patients.

Keywords

• cardiovascular risk
• morbidity
• mortality