Background and Purpose:
Evidence suggests that elevated thyroid function and elevated levels of thyroid autoantibodies are associated with risk of Moyamoya disease (MMD). Therefore we performed a meta-analysis of all available evidence, including unpublished data from our own center, in order to assess this association.
Methods:
We reviewed the English- and Chinese-language literature in major databases to identify studies examining the association between MMD and thyroid function or thyroid autoantibodies. We combined these data with those from our own prospective study conducted in our hospital.
Results:
In our center, 28 patients with MMD and 28 age-matched control patients with non-MMD stroke were included. Based on our literature searches, we identified two studies for inclusion in our meta-analysis, to which we added our own prospective study described above. Data from our hospital study indicated an association between risk of MMD and elevated thyroid autoantibodies (OR 9.00, 95% CI 1.03 to 78.94), but not between risk of MMD and elevated thyroid function (OR 5.87, 95% CI 0.64 to 53.93). Meta-analysis of our data with findings from the literature further supported the association with elevated thyroid autoantibodies (OR 8.77, 95% CI 4.45 to 17.29) and also indicated an association with elevated thyroid function (OR 9.74, 95% CI 2.18 to 43.49).
Conclusions:
Evidence strongly suggests that elevated thyroid autoantibodies and elevated thyroid function are independently associated with MMD. These clinical variables may require regular monitoring in patients with MMD.
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