Administration Of Thyroid Research Articles

SOME EFFECTS OF EXOGENOUS THYROID OR THYROXIN UPON PREMATURE INFANTS

Forty-eight premature infants, whose condition seemed satisfactory at one week of age and whose weights approximated 1500 gm., were selected for this study. Even-numbered infants in the series were given daily doses of desiccated thyroid or thyroxin for periods averaging 3½ weeks; odd-numbered infants were given placebos of lactose according to the same schedule. The clinical progress of the infants was noted and weekly red cell counts, hemoglobin and serum protein-bound iodine levels were determined. 1. Daily doses of 60 to 120 mg. thyroid produced no significant effects upon clinical condition and progress or upon the protein-bound iodine level. 2. Daily doses of thyroid 180 mg. or thyroxin 0.2 mg. did not affect the caloric and fluid intake, the gavage incidence, the amount of vomiting, the skin color or the body temperature. Such dosage, however, decreased the weight gain, increased the pulse rate and increased the incidence of diarrhea. A higher percentage of infants so treated required blood transfusions and did not fare so well clinically. The level of serum protein-bound iodine was elevated. The administration of thyroid or thyroxin to premature infants selected as noted above is therefore without observable benefit and is sometimes harmful. The effects of daily dosage with thyroxin 0.2 mg. were at least as great as those with thyroid 180 mg. 3. The mean protein-bound iodine level of 32 untreated infants was 5.7±.47 at an average age of 9 days, and mean values for the control infants did not differ significantly from this figure during a subsequent five week period. These levels do not suggest that the premature infant is deficient in circulating thyroxin. 4. Thyroid doses exceeding 120 mg./day are necessary to produce pharmacologic effects in premature infants and in euthyroid children and adults. This implies that the thyroid gland of the premature infant produces and releases thyroxin in amounts comparable to those of normal, older human beings and approximating 120 mg. thyroid/24 hours. Medication of the athyrotic cretin should be adjusted with this in mind. 5. When caloric intake is adjusted by the desires of the premature infant, he ingests an average of about 150 calories/kg. body weight/24 hours. On such a regimen, his weight gain approximates that of his fetal colleague of the same gestational age and averages more than 30 gm./day.

Vagal sensitivity and the production of auricular fibrillation in experimentally hyperthyroid dogs

Twelve dogs were made hyperthyroid, ten by feeding of desiccated thyroid, while four, including two of the ten mentioned, were given thyroxin intramuscularly. It was found that, (1) during experimental hyperthyroidism spontaneous auricular fibrillation was not seen, (2) the minimal amount of intravenously injected acetylcholine producing second degree atrioventricular block was not significantly different during euthyroidism and hyperthyroidism, (3) with large intravenous doses of acetylcholine or methacholine an increased tendency for the auricles to fibrillate was detected in only one of fifteen periods of thyroid administration. The findings are interpreted as indicating that no increased cardiac sensitivity to vagus substance is present in canine experimental hyperthyroidism. Since, (a) the relation of age and sex to the incidence of auricular fibrillation in clinical hyperthyroidism resembles that of age and sex to the incidence of coronary atherosclerosis, (b) a large percentage of patients with hyperthyroidism and auricular fibrillation show evidence of organic heart disease, (c) no correlation exists between the height of the basal metabolic rate and incidence of auricular fibrillation in thyrotoxicosis, and in view of the experimental findings presented, it is suggested that the induction of auricular fibrillation in thyrotoxicosis is influenced by increased vagal activity in the presence of some state independent of the thyrotoxicosis. It is speculated that auricular ischemia may be conducive to the development of fibrillation and that coronary vascular disease, not necessarily progressive, may be present and favorable to initiation of the arrhythmia in a large fraction of the thyrotoxic patients with fibrillation, but no other evidence of organic heart disease.

Sex difference in resistance of rats to thyroid hormone.

Two series of experiments were performed to compare the metabolic responses of male and female rats to thyroid hormone. In the first series dried thyroid was fed in the diet at a concentration of 1.5 gm. per kgm. of chow. Initial body weights ranged from 130 to 160 gm. Oxygen consumption was measured with the rats lightly anaesthetized with pentobarbitone sodium. In the second series, sodium thyroxine was injected subcutaneously once a day for five days and oxygen consumption was measured without anaesthetic. Initial body weights averaged 147 gm. for males and 137 gm. for females. Two doses of sodium thyroxine were used, 0.1 and 0.5 mgm. per kgm. per day. In both series the increase in oxygen consumption following the administration of thyroid or thyroxine was much less for female rats than for the males. In Series I, half the animals were castrated. The castrated females responded to thyroid in the same way as the normal and castrated males. The castrated females were then given stilboestrol (5 mgm. per liter in drinking water) for three weeks while they were kept on the same diet containing thyroid. Their metabolic rate returned to the levels of unoperated females. Light anaesthesia during the measurement of oxygen consumption reduced the variance within groups with high rates of oxygen consumption but not in groups with normal rates.

Thyroid in pulmonary injury induced by O2 in high concentration at atmospheric pressure.

Summary1. In a study of the influence of O2 in high concentrations (94% at atmospheric pressure) it was found that the administration of desiccated thyroid augments the adverse effects of O2 on normal and on hypophysectomized rats as shown 1) by a shortening of both the onset of the symptoms—hyperpnea, lethargy, dyspnea, coma—and the survival times, and 2) by increasing the severity of macroscopic pathological changes, including massive pleural effusion and hydrothorax, congestion, oedema and hepatization of the lungs and enlargement and congestion of the liver. 2. The pronounced protection which hypophy-sectomy provides against the adverse pulmonary effects of increased O2 is in large degree counteracted by the administration of thyroid to the hypophysectomized animal. This protection is, therefore, attributable not only to the loss of adrenocortical principles but also to the loss of thyrotropin. The possible involvement of an increased CO2 in the thyroid effects is discussed.

The effect of prolonged administration of thyroid.

Article1 November 1951THE EFFECT OF PROLONGED ADMINISTRATION OF THYROIDMACALLISTER W. JOHNSTON, A. H. SQUIRES, R. F. FARQUHARSON, F.A.C.P.MACALLISTER W. JOHNSTONSearch for more papers by this author, A. H. SQUIRESSearch for more papers by this author, R. F. FARQUHARSON, F.A.C.P.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-35-5-1008 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptINTRODUCTIONThe beneficial effects of continued thyroid therapy in patients suffering from myxedema are remarkable and persistent. On administration of relatively small doses, the basal metabolic rate rises and remains within normal limits as long as the therapy is continued. The symptoms and signs of myxedema disappear and do not recur; sometimes a slightly higher dosage of thyroid is required with the passage of time, but the effectiveness of the drug does not change materially. (See figure 1.) On the other hand, as was pointed out in a former report,1it is often difficult by the administration of similar amounts...Bibliography1. FarquharsonSquires RFAH: Inhibition of the secretion of the thyroid gland by continued ingestion of thyroid substance, Tr. A. Am. Physicians 41: 87, 1941. Google Scholar2. CopeRawsonMcArthur ORWJW: The hyperfunctioning single adenoma of the thyroid, Surg., Gynec. and Obst. 84: 415, 1947. MedlineGoogle Scholar3. RiggsManWinkler DSEBAW: Serum iodine of euthyroid subjects treated with desiccated thyroid, J. Clin. Investigation 24: 722, 1945. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Herring PT: The action of thyroid upon the growth of the body and organs of the white rat, Quart. J. Exper. Physiol. 11: 231, 1917. CrossrefGoogle Scholar5. Loeb L: Studies on compensatory hypertrophy of the thyroid gland. V. The effect of administration of thyroid, thymus gland and tethelin and of a meat diet on the hypertrophy of the thyroid gland in guinea-pigs, J. Research 42: 77, 1920. Google Scholar6. LoebBassettFriedman LRBH: Further investigations concerning the stimulating effect of anterior pituitary gland preparation on the thyroid gland, Proc. Soc. Exper. Biol. and Med. 28: 209, 1930. CrossrefGoogle Scholar7. SmithGreenwoodFoster PECFGL: A comparison in normal, thyroidectomized and hypophysectomized rats of the effects upon metabolism and growth resulting from daily injections of small amounts of thyroid extract, Am. J. Path. 3: 669, 1927. MedlineGoogle Scholar8. Kunde MM: Studies on metabolism; experimental hyperthyroidism, Am. J. Physiol. 82: 195, 1927. CrossrefGoogle Scholar9. Selye H: Compensatory atrophy of the adrenals, J. A. M. A. 115: 2246, 1940. CrossrefGoogle Scholar10. SchoenheimerSperry RWM: Micromethod for determination of free and combined cholesterol, J. Biol. Chem. 106: 745, 1934. CrossrefGoogle Scholar11. SalterJohnston WTMW: Tracing the thyroid hormone in peripheral tissues, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 8: 911, 1948. CrossrefGoogle Scholar12. Johnston MW: Unpublished data. Google Scholar13. Greer MA: Effect on endogenous thyroid activity of feeding desiccated thyroid to normal human subjects, New England J. Med. 244: 385, 1951. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar14. DanowskiManWinkler TSEBAW: Tolerance of normal, of thyroidectomized and of thiourea or thiouracil treated dogs to oral desiccated thyroid and to intravenous thyroxine, Endocrinology 38: 230, 1946. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Toronto, Canada*Presented at the Thirty-second Annual Session of the American College of Physicians, St. Louis, Mo., April 10, 1951.From the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, and the Medical Service, Toronto General Hospital.†National Research Council Senior Medical Research Fellow. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byEffects of supraphysiological doses of l-thyroxine on cognitive function in healthy individualsEffects of supraphysiological thyroxine administration in healthy controls and patients with depressive disordersRecovery of Pituitary Thyrotropic Function after Withdrawal of Prolonged Thyroid-Suppression TherapyTransient hypothyroidism after withdrawal of thyroxin therapyEFFECTIVE THYROXINE RATIO (ETR) AND TSH AS INDICATORS IN THE TREATMENT OF HYPOTHYROIDISMDextro-Thyroxine and hypercholesterolemia: A clinical studyThe diagnosis and treatment of primary and secondary hypothyroidismJodThe Value of the Thyrotropin Stimulation Test in the Diagnosis of MyxoedemaTherapie der Schilddrüse mit RadiojodObesityThe Serum Protein-Bound Iodine during Treatment of Thyroid DisordersRehabilitation of Insulin Function in Clinical DiabetesRADIO‐ACTIVE IODINE (I 131 ) AND PROTEIN‐BOUND IODINE IN THYROID DISORDERSA COMPARISON OF RADIOACTIVE AND METABOLIC METHODS OF INVESTIGATING THYROID FUNCTION 1 November 1951Volume 35, Issue 5Page: 1008-1022KeywordsCancer treatmentDrug administrationDrugsHospital medicineMedical servicesResearch laboratoriesSigns and symptomsThyroid Issue Published: 1 November 1951 PDF downloadLoading ...

PHYSIOLOGY OF THE THYROID GLAND IN BIRDS: A REVIEW.

Summary.A brief introductory account of the structure of the thyroid gland and the general effects of its hormone are given.There is sufficient experimental evidence to warrant the conclusion that in birds, as in other vertebrates, the level of thyroid function is regulated by a hormone of the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland, the thyrotrophic hormone.Increased thyroid activity during the cooler period of the year is found in a number of species, and this is probably widespread.For all species so far tested, feathers grown during thyroid deficiency show abnormally loose texture and become elongated and narrow. Reverse changes can be produced by thyroid administration to normal birds.The relationship between the thyroid and migratory behaviour, though probable, needs further investigation.Feather pigmentation is in some species unaffected by the thyroid, but is increased in others.There is undoubtedly a relationship between the moult and increased thyroid activity since a phase of high thyroid function preceding the moult is of widespread occurrence. In some gallinaceous birds the moult can be precipitated by thyroid administration, but not in ducks. In some species complete suppression of the moult has been claimed if thyroidectomy is performed sufficiently far ahead of the next moult due. Complete dependence of moulting on a raised output of thyroid hormone has, however, not yet been proved for any species.So far there is experimental evidence, which requires comfirmation, from one species only that return of the gonad to the resting condition following the breeding‐season recrudescence is to a considerable extent dependent on the thyroid.In Domestic Fowls thyroid hormone affects the spur.

A note on electrophoresis in hypothyroidism.

SummaryThe electrophoretic patterns of the sera of 4 hypothyroid patients were studied, 2 before and after thyroid administration. The results have been compared with those of other authors. On the basis of all the available data there does not appear to be a characteristic distribution of protein fractions in hypothyroid disease.

Effect of cold, adrenocorticotropic and thyroid hormones on urinary excretion of pentose in the rat.

SummaryLow temperatures and thyroid administration increased significantly the urinary excretion of pentose in rats. ACTH administration had a preventive effect upon the increased pentosuria due to cold.

Induced menstruation for metrorrhagia and amenorrhea

1.1. Progesterone has been given in various forms as 278 courses of treatment in seventy-six patients.2.2. Antibleeding effects during metrorrhagia and withdrawal bleeding effects have been utilized in controlling metrorrhagia and amenorrhea.3.3. Of eight patients with puberty metrorrhagia, four were apparently cured, one had recurrence after six months, and one developed amenorrhea. Two were not cured, being controlled only as long as progesterone was given.4.4. Of thirty cases with metrorrhagia after puberty, thirteen were considered cured (seven received thyroid).5.5. Of seven patients with primary amenorrhea, one was cured. This patient had an estrogenic vaginal mucosa before treatment and probably had only delayed menarche.6.6. Of thirty-one patients with secondary amenorrhea, eight have been considered improved or cured (five received thyroid).7.7. Progesterone produces a menstruating type of endometrium with fragmentation and necrosis, which apparently clears the uterus of the superficial layers of endometrium.8.8. This useful procedure controls bleeding accurately, but cure apparently depends on spontaneous reversion to normal, aided in some cases by correction of abnormal weight changes, and the administration of thyroid as indicated.

INCREASED PROTEIN CATABOLISM IN THYROIDECTOMIZED RATS: RATES OF URINE UREA EXCRETION AND SERUM UREA CONCENTRATIONS1

Uniformity of opinion does not exist regarding the relationship of hypothyroidism to urinary nitrogen excretion. Magnus-Levy (1907) noted a low nitrogen excretion in myxedematous patients, while Underhill and Hilditch (1909) and Janney and Isaacson (1918) reported no definite change in nitrogen excretion after thyroidectomy. Johnston and Maroney (1939) described negative nitrogen balances in cretins, which could be made positive by the administration of thyroid. Small numbers of subjects were studied by these authors, and their investigations were performed under diverse conditions. This report is presented because no definite conclusion can be drawn from the existing literature on the relationship of hypothyroidism to protein metabolism, and because it was found in the experiments described here that the rate of urea excretion of thyroidectomized rats may increase markedly under certain conditions not associated with a high intake of dietary protein. Urea was measured instead of nitrogen, since these stu...

Nitrogen Metabolism of the Normal and the Vitamin A-Deficient Rat as Affected by Thyroid Administration

Nitrogen Metabolism of the Normal and the Vitamin A-Deficient Rat as Affected by Thyroid Administration

THE ACCUMULATION OF RADIOACTIVE IODIDE BY THE THYROID GLAND IN NORMAL AND THYROTOXIC SUBJECTS AND THE EFFECT OF THIOCYANATE ON ITS DISCHARGE1

Interest in the effects of thiocyanate on the thyroid gland followed the observation that goiter occurred in 11 of 246 patients treated with the material for long periods of time for hypertension (Barker, 1936; Barker, Lindberg, and Wald, 1941). Both the thyroid enlargement and the accompanying manifestations of hypothyroidism were relieved by thyroid administration. It was later postulated that the action of thiocyanate in producing goiter in rats differed from that of the thiouracil derivatives (Astwood, 1943). With the former the thyroid effect was much slower to develop and was completely abolished by added iodide, which did not modify the thyroid response to compounds of the thiouracil series. From studies of the accumulation of I131 by surviving thyroid slices from sheep, Franklin, Chaikoff, and Lerner (1944) showed that the iodide-concentrating capacity was inhibited by thiocyanate. Other goitrogens did not significantly diminish the accumulation of iodide by the tissue but prevented its conversion...

Thyroid function and the duration of sodium pentobarbital anesthesia

Thyroidectomy in adult female rats lengthened the duration of sodium pentobarbital anesthesia. Thyroid administration to normal rats did not change significantly the length of anesthesia. Thiouracil feeding failed to change the length of the anesthetic period. In dogs, thyroidectomy had no significant effect on the duration of pentobarbital anesthesia. Thyroid treatment of thyroidectomized dogs did not alter the length of anesthesia.

THE EFFECTS OF OESTROGENS AND OF MILD CHRONIC STARVATION ON THE WHITE RAT

Daily injections of peanut oil for 17 or 18 days cause decrease in rate of growth of the rat, and testicular atrophy. Hence results in experiments in which peanut oil (and probably similar oils) are used as solvent vehicles for administration of material by injection may be misinterpreted. Oral administration of oestradiol (3 mgm. daily) to young mature rats for three weeks or more causes decrease in growth rate, relative decrease in size of kidneys, heart, spleen, muscle, and ovaries, little effect on the liver, marked decrease in size of testes, even to actual atrophy, and frequent enlargement of the adrenals in males, with occasional enlargement in females. The adrenals are discoloured to a maroon shade, whether enlarged or not, and evidence is advanced that they are undergoing a pathological change; any enlargement is not in the nature of hypertrophy. Oral administration of stilboestrol gives similar results. The general effects of oestrogens are more marked in male than in female animals. Loss of appetite and diminished food intake are among the general effects, but the mild chronic starvation so produced can only contribute in very minor degree to the other oestrogenic effects.In mild chronic starvation from food restriction the liver is invariably affected, while the adrenals are never enlarged nor discoloured.The effects of combined oestrogenic and thyroid administration seem to be neither additive nor truly antagonistic.

9. The Effect of Thyroid Administration to Patients with Hypometabolism

Acta Medica ScandinavicaVolume 126, Issue S184 p. 37-40 9. The Effect of Thyroid Administration to Patients with Hypometabolism First published: January/December 1946 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0954-6820.1946.tb02164.xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume126, IssueS184January/December 1946Pages 37-40 RelatedInformation

THE DURATION OF ACTION OF SINGLE DOSES OF THYROID HORMONE1

REPORTS on the duration of action of thyroid compounds vary considerably. As early as1904, Magnus-Levy reported that the effects on the basal metabolic rate of thyroid feeding in myxedematous patients lasted 80 days. Kendall (1917), probably the first to inject pure thyroxin intoanimals, compared the effects of small daily doses and a single large dose. A goat receiving 9 mg.daily was dead at the end of 11 days; the single injection of 150 mg. in another goat produced changes in the electrocardiographic tracings which returned to normal in 2 or 3 days. In contrast to-these results, Kendall (1923) reported that a single dose of thyroxin in a myxedematous patient would exert its physiologic effect for 5 to 6 weeks. Boothby, Sandiford, Sandiford, and Slosse (1925) showed that the rate of decline of the basal metabolism following withdrawal of thyroid administration in myxedematous patients was a straight line, when plotted on semilogarithmic paper.

The Effect of Thyroidectomy on Lactation in the Bovine

1.Thyroidectomy performed on cows preceding gestation, during pregnancy, and during lactation caused a complete cessation of lactation in about 180 days.2.Total milk and fat yield were reduced about 75 per cent.3.Incomplete removal of thyroid gland produced a temporary decline in milk secretion followed by a gradual return to former levels.4.Composition of the milk as determined by fat, lactose, nitrogen, and specific gravity analyses was not affected.5.Milk and fat yields were restored to former levels by oral administration of fresh thyroid. Decreasing response was observed as the lactation period progressed.6.It is concluded that the reduction of lactation after thyroidectomy is due mainly to thyroid deficiency.

ACUTE GOITER DUE TO CYANATE THERAPY

Since 1925, when the various cyanate preparations were reintroduced in the treatment of essential hypertension, various toxic manifestations have been noted in patients receiving these drugs, including a sudden and often painful enlargement of the thyroid gland. This acute goiter fluctuates in size and is often so painful that it has been considered actual thyroiditis. Symptoms suggesting myxedema may accompany the enlargement of the thyroid, such as edema of the eyelids. The basal metabolic rate is often normal or minus. Regression in the size of the gland to normal occurs with cessation of the cyanate therapy. The most recent published case is that of Foulger and Rose, 1 who report that a woman aged 35, who was given potassium thiocyanate for essential hypertension, showed symptoms of myxedema, the thyroid gland became noticeably enlarged and the basal metabolic rate was slightly below normal. Regression occurred following the administration of thyroid and

Abnormal brachial blood pressure response to postural change in patients suffering from psychoses of the senium. Control by thyroid

1. Forty-one patients suffering from behavioral disorders occurring in the senium and 16 normal controls were investigated concerning the effects of limited postural change in the brachial blood pressure. 2. Tilting the head up or down 12.5° from the horizontal produced maintenance of pressure or rise of systolic pressure in 93.7 per cent of trials, and in the diastolic pressure in 89.2 per cent of trials in the control group. 3. In the senile group, the figures for systolic were 43.6 per cent and for diastolic 73 per cent. 4. None of the control group showed a greater deviation from the dominant response than 5 mm. Hg. Of the senile patients, 77.4 per cent showed abnormal responses of greater than 5 mm. Hg. 5. Thyroid given by mouth to 10 senile patients resulted in decrease of abnormal responses in both systolic and diastolic pressures in four instances, decrease in abnormal systolic responses in two cases, and in diastolic response in one case. In three cases, there was no definite change noted in systolic or diastolic pressure. 6. It is concluded that there is definite evidence that the compensatory mechanism controlling the blood pressure level during postural changes is markedly defective in patients suffering from psychoses of the senium, and that oral administration of thyroid may ameliorate this deficiency.

SOME EFFECTS OF THYROID AND GONADOTROPHIC PREPARATIONS IN THE FOWL

1. Extracts of Horse, Sheep, and Pig Pituitary, Pregnant Mare's Serum and Chorionic Gonadotrophin were administered to hens prior to and during the moulting period. Dried thyroid powder was fed during the non‐productive phase.2. Injections of P.M.S. to laying hens resulted in cessation of egg production within 5 days, and the onset of a heavy moult. The combs increased in size during treatment. Apart from a slight increase in comb size in the group receiving Pig Pituitary extract, no reaction to the other gonadotrophins could be detected at the dosage‐level employed.3. In non‐laying hens P.M.S. had little effect; Pig Pituitary appeared to cause a temporary reactivation of the reproductive organs, but in no case did ovulation occur. The other gonadotrophins were again inactive.4. Consistent symptoms of ovarian stimulation resulted from the administration of thyroid, and a number of birds resumed egg production following this treatment. Variations in the degree of response obtained appeared to be related to the media in which this hormone powder was fed.