Correlation between the five items of thyroid function and serum sex hormones in male patients with thyroid dysfunction

Abstract

Objective To explore the correlation between the five items of thyroid function and serum sex hormones in male patients with thyroid dysfunction. Methods A total of 122 male patients with thyroid dysfunction who were treated in our hospital from March 2017 to March 2018 were enrolled, and 58 normal healthy men as controls. The patients were divided into 62 cases of hyperthyroidism and 60 cases of hypothyroidism. The hyperthyroidism group was treated with methimazole tablets, and the hypothyroidism group was treated with levothyroxine sodium tablets. Before and after treatment, the five items of thyroid function of the three groups were compared to evaluate the therapeutic effect, and the levels of serum hormones of the three groups were analyzed. Results After treatment, the five items of thyroid function in the hyperthyroidism group and the hypothyroidism group were significantly improved, and there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups and the control group (P>0.05). Before treatment, estradiol (E2), testosterone (T), and pituitary prolactin (PRL) in the hyperthyroidism group were higher than those in the control group (P 0.05). The levels of E2 and PRL in the hypothyroidism group were higher than those in the control group, while the concentration of T was lower than that in the control group (P 0.05). After treatment, the E2 concentration of the hyperthyroidism group was (21.83±2.91) ng/L, the T concentration was (17.96±5.75) μg/L, the LH concentration was (4.31±2.70) mIU/ml, and the PRL concentration was (13.26±4.16) μg/L, the levels of four sex hormones were significantly improved compared with those before treatment (P<0.05); the E2 concentration in the hypothyroidism group was (22.63±3.72) ng/L, and the T concentration was (16.40±2.15) μg/L, the PRL concentration was (14.77±3.65) μg/L, the three sex hormone levels were significantly improved compared with those before treatment (P<0.05). After treatment, the levels of five sex hormones in the two groups were similar to those in the control group. Conclusions Male patients with thyroid dysfunction often have disordered serum sex hormone levels, which may be associated with thyroid hormone levels. Thyroid hormone may further affect sexual function by interfering with the concentrations of E2, T, and PRL. Key words: Hyperthyroidism; Hypothyroidism; Five items of thyroid function; Serum sex hormones