Prognosis of autoimmune thyroid disease associated with hereditary thrombophilia during pregnancy

Abstract

Autoimmune thyroid pathology has been connected with several systemic autoimmune disorders, namely hereditary thrombophilia and antiphospholipid syndrome. In an iodine-replete country, these diseases need to be evaluated simultaneously. This study was conducted to assess the connection between acute and chronic thyroiditis and inherited thrombophilia and their potential implications in pregnancy. In the analysis of the cases admitted to the Department of Obstetrics Gynecology of the University Emergency Hospital Bucharest from January 2015 up to September 2019, we identified pregnancies marked by autoimmune hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism associated with hereditary thrombophilia, by standard statistical methods. In this investigation, we determined the prevalence of immunological markers specific for thrombophilia and against thyroid antigens in pregnant women, and explored whether they associate with distinct clinical phenotypes. Besides the well-accounted impact of hereditary thrombophilia during pregnancy - which is emphasized in our study by the incidence of moderate preeclampsia - we also account for a direct and statistically significant relationship between thrombophilia and moderate intensity autoimmune diseases (including autoimmune thyroiditis). Moreover, if these two pathologies are combined there is an increased risk of the presence of another autoimmune disease.