Evolution and correlation analysis of thyroid auto-antibodies in Graves' disease

Objective:To investigate the alteration and clinical significance of serum thyrotropin receptor antibody(TRAb) and thyroid peroxidase antibody(TPOAb) activities before and during treatment of Graves’ disease(GD) with thiamazole.Methods:ELISA were used to measure the sera TRAb and TPOAb level before treatment and during the different treatment time(3,6,12,18,and 24 months) in patients with GD.At the same time,the serum free thyroxine(FT4),free triiodothyronine(FT3) and thyrotropin(TSH) were measured,the correlation of TRAb,TPOAb,FT3,FT4 and TSH were analyzed.Results:The serum TRAb value in 232 cases of initial GD was 0.86 expressed in median(M),the prevalence was 73.1%(171/232);The serum TPOAb value was 0.55(M) and the prevalence was 28.9%(67/232).During the treatment,TRAb value and prevalence significantly decreased,but the TPOAb level got once increase in 12 months,and then gradually declined.There was no correlation between TRAb,TPOAb,and the thyroid function(FT3,FT4,TSH).Conclusion:Although both TRAb and TPOAb are the autoimmune antibodies in GD,they might reflect different immune perturbations,and the pertaurbations are independently of thyroid function.