Comparative Effectiveness of Levothyroxine, Desiccated Thyroid Extract, and Levothyroxine plus Liothyronine in Hypothyroidism

Introduction: Studies comparing levothyroxine (LT4) therapy with LT4+liothyronine (LT3) or desiccated thyroid extract (DTE) did not detect consistent superiority of either treatment. Here, we investigated these therapies, focusing on the whole group of LT4-treated hypothyroid patients, while also exploring the most symptomatic patients. Methodology: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, crossover study of 75 hypothyroid patients randomly allocated to 1 of 3 treatment arms, LT4, LT4+LT3, and DTE, for 22 weeks. The primary outcomes were posttreatment scores on the 36-point thyroid symptom questionnaire (TSQ-36), 12-point quality of life general health questionnaire (GHQ-12), the Wechsler memory scale-version IV (VMS-IV), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Secondary endpoints included treatment preference, biochemical and metabolic parameters, etiology of hypothyroidism, and Thr92Ala-DIO2 gene polymorphism. Analyses were performed with a linear mixed model using subject as a random factor and group as a fixed effect. Results: Serum TSH remained within reference range across all treatment arms. There were no differences for primary and secondary outcomes, except for a minor increase in heart rate caused by DTE. Treatment preference was not different and there were no interferences of the etiology of hypothyroidism or Thr92Ala-DIO2 gene polymorphism in the outcomes. Subgroup analyses of the 1/3 most symptomatic patients on LT4 revealed strong preference for treatment containing T3, which improved performance on TSQ-36, GHQ-12, BDI, and visual memory index (VMS-IV component). Conclusions: As a group, outcomes were similar among hypothyroid patients taking DTE vs LT4+T3 vs LT4. However, those patients that were most symptomatic on LT4 preferred and responded positively to therapy with LT4+LT3 or DTE.

Automated summary

Overall, there was no consistent superiority observed between DTE, LT4+T3, and LT4 in treating hypothyroid patients. However, the most symptomatic patients on LT4 showed a preference for and positive response to therapy with LT4+T3 or DTE, as evidenced by improvements in various outcome measures.