Do not forget the kidney in graves' disease

PurposeTo investigate the prevalence of microalbuminuria and factors associated with microalbuminuria in Graves' Disease (GD).MethodsThis cross-sectional and single-center study included 99 patients with GD and 47 healthy controls (HC). Exclusion criteria such as active infection, uncontrolled diabetes, and chronic kidney disease were applied to the participants. The participants' clinical findings, comorbidities, drug use, laboratory tests, and thyroid antibody levels were recorded. Spot urine samples were collected and stored at - 80 celcius to analyze the presence of microalbuminuria.ResultsThe prevalence of microalbuminuria in patients with GD was 12.1%. The median microalbumin/creatinine ratio in spot urine (UACR) in patients with GD (9.49 mg/g [5.09-18.10]) was higher than in the HC group (7.99 mg/g [3.48-12.88], p = 0.033). UACR was correlated with thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor antibody (TRAb), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), and free triiodothyronine (FT3) levels (p = 0.020, p = 0.006, p = 0.009 respectively). In the regression analysis, only the relationship between TRAb level and UACR remained (p = 0.040).ConclusionThis study demonstrates an increased prevalence of microalbuminuria in patients with GD. There was a significant correlation between microalbuminuria and TRAb level in patients with GD. This relationship suggests that one of the underlying mechanisms of microalbuminuria seen in patients with GD may be autoimmunity.

Automated summary

This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of microalbuminuria and associated factors in patients with Graves' Disease (GD). The results showed that the prevalence of microalbuminuria in GD patients was 12.1%. There was a significant correlation between microalbuminuria and the level of thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor antibody (TRAb) in GD patients, suggesting that autoimmunity may be one of the underlying mechanisms of microalbuminuria in GD patients.