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Headache disorders may increase hypothyroidism risk
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Patients with headache disorders may be at increased risk for developing new onset hypothyroidism, study data show.
“Most studies have reported an increased prevalence of hypothyroidism in persons with headache disorders,” Andrew T. Martin, BA, of the department of internal medicine at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and colleagues wrote. “Our primary objective for this study was to determine whether the incidence of hypothyroidism was increased in patients with preexisting headache disorders and/or possible migraine after adjusting for covariates, such as age, gender, medications, smoking and BMI.”
The longitudinal retrospective cohort study used surveillance data from the Fernald Medical Monitoring Program, which included 8,412 adults living close to the Fernald uranium processing plant near Cincinnati, Ohio. During the 20-year monitoring program, participants underwent physical examinations and thyroid function tests every 3 years. The researchers defined headache disorders as self-reports of “frequent headaches,” physician diagnosis or use of any headache-specific medication.
Headache disorders were reported by 26% of study participants, according to Martin and colleagues, and roughly 7% of those developed hypothyroidism. Among participants with headache disorders, the HR for developing new-onset hypothyroidism was 1.21 (95% CI, 1.001-1.462). A model using headache disorders as a covariate determined other significant covariates, including female sex (HR = 2.638; 95% CI, 2.169-3.209), BMI (HR = 1.027; 95% CI, 1.014-1.039), smoking (HR = 0.618; 95% CI, 0.458-0.835) and HT-inducing medications (HR = 5.836; 95% CI, 3.416-9.97).
Participants with possible migraine had an increased risk for hypothyroidism compared with those without (HR = 1.411; 95% CI, 1.009-1.973), which, researchers wrote, may indicate that patients with migraine were “particularly susceptible” to developing hypothyroidism.
“Our study provides evidence that headache disorders in general and particularly possible migraine may increase the risk of future development of hypothyroidism,” Martin and colleagues wrote. “Mechanisms through which these two disorders might be associated include modulation of immune function, autonomic dysfunction, elevated serum homocysteine levels, shared environmental factors, or confounding variables. These represent interesting results that will need to be confirmed in future epidemiology studies.” – by Andy Polhamus
Disclosure: Martin reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full study for a complete list of all authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
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