Thyroid dysfunction in Elderly people with type-2 Diabetes Mellitus

Background: The prevalence of diabetes is rapidly increasing all over the world sparing no age group and some epidemiological studies indicated increase in the prevalence of thyroid disorders in elderly people. Worldwide studies have shown that there is increasing incidence of thyroid disorders among diabetic patients; this may complicate the metabolic regulation to a significantly dangerous level especially in older people. This reflects a strong interrelation between diabetes mellitus and thyroid dysfunction. The aim of our study is to know the association of thyroid disorders in elderly people with type-2 diabetes mellitus. Materials and Methods: The study was carried out on 75 type-2 diabetic patients of more than 60 years with equal number of healthy controls. Blood glucose levels, Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), Thyroid hormones and Lipid profile were analyzed and results were compared with healthy individuals. Results: In this study, the thyroid dysfunction was observed in 13.3% of case group. Out of 75 cases the frequency of hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism were 9.33% and 3.97% respectively and euthyroid state contributed to 86.7%. Conclusion: Thyroid disorders in elderly people with diabetes found to be significantly higher than non-diabetics. This helps in focussing not only treating diabetes alone, but also screening for thyroid disorders and managing both the clinical scenario, together will reduce morbidity and mortality rates. Keywords: Elderly diabetic, Hyperthyroidism, Hyperglycemia, Subclinical Hypothyroidism, Diabetes Mellitus, Thyroid Dysfunction