Assessment of thyroid hormone levels among Sickle Cell Disease Patients in steady clinical state at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Nigeria
| Main Authors: | Manafa PO, Okocha EC, Ekuma-Okereke O, Aneke, JC, Ikegwuonu JA, Ibe NC, Chukwuanukwu RC, Mbachu NA, Nwene KE, Ebugosi RS, Manafa VI, Ihim AC |
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| Format: | Article Journal |
| Terbitan: |
, 2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: |
https://zenodo.org/record/4038745 |
Daftar Isi:
- ABSTRACT Background of study: Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is an inherited haemoglobinopathy characterized by life-long haemolytic anaemia and vaso-occlussive crisis. Oxidative stress may be linked to its pathophysiology which may lead to several organ damage and organ dysfunctions. Objective: To assess the effect of sickle cell disease on thyroid hormone levels using TSH, T4 and T3 as markers. Materials and methods: A total of 90 male subjects (consisting of 30 HbSS subjects in steady state, 30 HbAS individuals and 30 normal subjects (HbAA) as the control subjects) aged 18 to 60 years were randomly recruited for this study. The genotypes of the subjects were determined using cellulose electrophoretic procedure and the method adopted for the determination of serum tri-iodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels was the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Full blood count was determined by the Sysmex automated procedure while the disease severity was evaluated using the severity scoring technique. Results: There was a significant difference in the mean serum levels of T3, T4 and TSH in the different blood genotype groups (P˂0.05). The post-hoc analysis showed a significantly lower mean serum levels of T3 and T4 in HbSS subjects compared with the HbAA individuals (P<0.05) respectively. More so, the mean serum level of TSH in homozygous sickle cell individuals (HbSS) was significantly higher than the control (HbAA) and heterozygous sickle cell subjects (HbAS) (P<0.05). Furthermore, the correlation coefficient between serum levels of T3 (r=0.083) (P=0.692) and TSH (r=0.277) (P=0.191) showed a non-significant positive correlation with disease severity in HbSS subjects. Conclusion: There was a significant low serum level of T3 and elevated TSH in the presence of a non-significant linear correlation of T3 and TSH with SCD severity, suggesting a possible primary hypothyroidism in sickle cell disease patients. We thereby recommend regular supplementation with nutrients that could aid the functional activities of thyroid gland in sickle cell disease individuals.