INFLUENCE OF THYROID FUNCTION ON CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM AND A NEW METHOD FOR ASSESSING RESPONSE TO INSULIN

A new method for assessing both glucose utilization and response to insulin is presented. The technique eliminates certain shortcomings of previous methods, which have yielded widely varying results in patients with abnormal thyroid function. The results of the application of the new procedure to 38 euthyroid patients, 15 patients with hyperthyroidism and 13 patients with hypothyroidism, are presented. In the euthyroid group, the mean specific rate constant for glucose utilization (K) was .0349; for the hyperthyroid patients it was .0325; and for the hypothyroid patients it was .0269. The mean K value for the hypothyroid patients was significantly less than that for the euthyroid patients, whereas the mean K value for the hyperthyroid patients was not significantly different from that for the euthyroid patients. In the euthyroid group, insulin resulted in a mean increase in K of 59 per cent. The hyperthyroid patients showed a significantly greater response (+ 104 per cent) to insulin. The hypothyroid patients showed an insignificant response (+ 18 per cent) to insulin. The interpretation of these results is discussed with regard to other data on the relationship of thyroid function to carbohydrate metabolism.