Pemphigus and thyroid disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Objective: No consensus exists regarding the association between pemphigus and thyroid disease. To explore the relationship between the two conditions by synthesizing the existing data. Methods: We performed this review based on PubMed, Embase and Web of Science (from inception to 2022) and used the Newcastle-Ottawa scale for assessing the quality of studies. The outcome was represented by pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). And the publication bias and sensitivity analyses were developed. Results: Our analyze finally included six studies containing 17,567 pemphigus patients. Overall, we revealed that pemphigus is significantly associated with hypothyroidism (OR 1.70, 95% CI 1.54–1.87), while not with thyroid cancer (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.41–2.11) and autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) (OR 1.64, 95% CI 0.91–2.95). In subgroup analyses, pemphigus was also not associated with Graves’ disease (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.63–1.49) and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (OR 1.32, 95% CI 0.88–1.97). Conclusion: Our results reveal a significant association between pemphigus and hypothyroidism. Considering other relevant studies, we also speculate that the prevalence of AITD is higher in pemphigus patients than in the general population.