Thyroid hormone may predict treatment failure in Kawasaki disease.
Pediatr Int 2024;
66:e15723. [PMID:
38326932 DOI:
10.1111/ped.15723]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
In systemic inflammatory conditions, inflammatory cytokines can cause low thyroid hormone levels. There are no reports discussing the relation between thyroid hormone levels and response to treatment for Kawasaki disease.
METHODS
We investigated 67 patients who underwent treatment in the acute phase of Kawasaki disease. We divided patients into two groups based on their response to initial intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) treatment: the responder group (n = 40), and the non-responder group (n = 27). The serum levels of the thyroid hormones free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) were compared before and after treatment in all patients, and between responder and non-responder groups.
RESULTS
The FT3, FT4, and TSH levels were low before the initial treatment and increased significantly after treatment (p < 0.05). The FT3, FT4, and TSH levels before treatment were significantly lower in the non-responder group than in the responder group (p < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis suggested that the addition of pre-treatment FT4 values to Gunma score was useful in predicting treatment failure.
CONCLUSIONS
Thyroid hormone and TSH levels were lower in the non-responder group than in the responder group in the initial IVIG treatment for Kawasaki disease. This study suggests that Kawasaki disease in the acute phase is associated with low thyroid hormone levels and TSH. It is possible that these hormone levels predict response to the initial IVIG.
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