Epicardial Adipose Tissue Increased in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Subclinical Hypothyroidism

Objective: To investigate whether or not patients with subclinical hypothyroidism (SH) have increased epicardial adipose tissue (EAT). Subjects and Methods: Sixty-one patients with newly diagnosed SH and without any known cardiovascular disease were enrolled. Twenty-four subjects matched for age, gender and body mass index without any thyroid dysfunctions were included as a control group. The EAT was measured by echocardiography and thyroid functions were assessed by routine blood examination. Results: Patients with SH had higher EAT values than control subjects (3.6 +/- 0.9 vs. 2.8 +/- 1.4, p = 0.005). Also, SH patients with thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) >= 10 mU/l had higher EAT than those with SH with TSH < 10 mU/l and control subjects (p = 0.013). In addition, while there was significant correlation between EAT and TSH (r = 0.31, p = 0.014) in patients with SH, there was no significant relation between EAT and TSH in normal subjects (r = 0.09, p = 0.64). Conclusions: There was a higher level of EAT in patients with SH compared with normal subjects and a significant correlation between EAT and TSH was found. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel