Hypothyroidism and its influence in the development of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS)

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a complex disorder that affects the cardiovascular system, and it is generally associated with mental and metabolic health issues. To diagnose MetS it is essential to identify certain comorbidities related to cardiovascular diseases. Hypothyroidism, for instance, is a common disorder that reduces the basal metabolism, leading to the development of other diseases. Therefore, it is important to know how hypothyroidism can increase the chances of MetS. Objectives: To assess whether there is an increased risk of patients with hypothyroidism developing MetS given the association of different comorbidities in a sample of an urban Brazilian population. Methods: This was an observational, exploratory and retrospective study of patients diagnosed with hypothyroidism (using levothyroxine for hormonal reposition therapy).The incidence and prevalence of four specific comorbidities were quantified by histograms, and all comparisons were performed by using joint and conditional probabilities with their respective confident intervals. Results: Consistent with the literature, our results also showed that there is a prevalence in women (79%) and in elderly patients (80%). Moreover, it also indicated that around 64% of the patients were women aged over 60 years and at least one comorbidity was associated with them. By analyzing the risk group for MetS, with two comorbidities, the combination with higher chances of acquiring a new comorbidity were Systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) and Diabetes Mellitus (DM), in this sample. Conclusion: Our results indicate that hypothyroidism can increase the chances to develop MetS or may worsen its effects due to the association of common comorbidities present in both cases. Keywords: metabolic syndrome, hypothyroidism, comorbidities, statistical analysis.