Do Different TSH Suppression Levels Effect Heart Rate Variability and QT Dispersions in Patients with Differentiated Thyroid Cancer?

[OBJECTIVE] The aim of this study was to investigate changes in heart rate variability (HRV) and QT dispersion (QTd) in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer at different TSH suppression levels.

[METHODS] The study included 125 DTC patients, who had been on TSH suppression treatment (TSHST) for at least 1 year. The patients were categorized into three groups: patients with TSH < 0.1 mIU/L (n:30), those with TSH 0.1 to 0.5 mIU/L (n:56), and those with TSH 0.5 to 2 mIU/L (n:39). The first two groups were classified as suppression groups, and the last as replacement (control) group. All patients underwent 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) recording and 24-hour rhythm holter echocardiography analysis.

[RESULTS] The HRV results derived from a 24-hour rhythm holter did not exhibit any significant difference ( < 0.05). In dispersion evaluations, the QTd was significantly longer in the suppression groups (groups 1 and 2), than in the replacement group (group 3) ( < 0.001 and p:0.002, respectively). The same was found for corrected QT dispersion (QTcd) ( < 0.001 and p: 0.008, respectively). In multivariate linear regression analysis, TSH was found to affect QTd (β = -0.299; = 0.002) and QTcd (β = -0.300;  = 0.002) values independently.

[CONCLUSION] In this study, it was shown that in patients with DTC receiving TSHST, QT dispersion prolonged as the TSH suppression level increased. Especially in high-risk DTC patients, evaluation of QTd may be useful in terms of evaluating cardiovascular risk and regulating TSHST level.