Hypothyroidism & Hypercholesterolemia. Is there a connection?

Thyroid function. Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease:

The Atherosclerosis Risk Study in the Communities (ARIC).

(According to a study published on June 12, 2017 in J. Clin. Endocrinol Metaboljc.2017-00986.)

Thyroid function has been strongly associated with blood lipids among the modifiable risk factors.

Among the 11,359 participants (57 ±6 years, 58% were women), thyroid function was more related to blood lipids than to blood pressure or sugar.

In contrast to moderate or severe thyroid disease, the association of mild thyroid disease with lipids was small in size.

In patients with moderate / severe and mild hypothyroidism, with respect to euthyroidism, the mean adjusted differences in LDL were + 15.1 mg / dL (95% CI, 10.5-19.7) and +3.2 mg / DL respectively.

An opposite pattern was observed in hyperthyroidism.

During a mean follow-up of 22.5 years, 1102 myocardial infarctions and 838 strokes occurred with similar effects between basal thyroid groups and triiodothyronine (T3) concentrations.

Hypothyroidism is associated with hyperlipidemia, but size is small in mild hypothyroidism and cardiovascular effects were similar between groups.

REFERENCES 

Martin SS, Daya N, Lutsey PL, Matsushita K, Fretz A, McEvoy JW, Blumenthal RS, Coresh J, Greenland P, Kottgen A, Selvin E.

Thyroid Function, Cardiovascular Risk Factors, and Incident Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study.

J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 2017 Jun 12 [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1210/jc.2017-00986. PMID: 28605456