Sakai Kan, Yonaha Tadahiro, Shinzato Takashi, Taira Takahiro
General Internal Medicine, Nakagami Hospital, Okinawa, JPN.
Cureus. 2024 Jun 11;16(6):e62203. doi: 10.7759/cureus.62203. eCollection 2024 Jun.
This case report presents a 77-year-old woman who developed subacute thyroiditis following COVID-19. The patient exhibited atypical symptoms, including fever, fatigue, anorexia, significant weight loss, headaches, and palpitations, without the typical neck pain or tenderness associated with thyroiditis. One week later, a follow-up examination showed mild enlargement and tenderness of the thyroid. Laboratory tests indicated elevated thyroid hormone levels and suppressed thyroid-stimulating hormone. Ultrasonography revealed diffuse thyroid enlargement with poor blood flow, consistent with subacute thyroiditis. Despite the absence of typical neck pain, the diagnosis was supported by clinical, laboratory, and imaging findings. This case suggests the importance of considering subacute thyroiditis as a potential secondary condition following COVID-19, even in the absence of typical symptoms. Clinicians should consider that and perform thorough evaluations in patients with recent COVID-19 exposure and nonspecific symptoms.
本病例报告介绍了一名77岁女性，她在感染新冠病毒后患上了亚急性甲状腺炎。患者表现出非典型症状，包括发热、疲劳、厌食、显著体重减轻、头痛和心悸，没有与甲状腺炎相关的典型颈部疼痛或压痛。一周后，随访检查显示甲状腺轻度肿大并有压痛。实验室检查表明甲状腺激素水平升高，促甲状腺激素受到抑制。超声检查显示甲状腺弥漫性肿大，血流不佳，符合亚急性甲状腺炎。尽管没有典型的颈部疼痛，但临床、实验室和影像学检查结果支持这一诊断。该病例表明，即使没有典型症状，也应考虑亚急性甲状腺炎作为新冠病毒感染后的潜在继发病症。临床医生应考虑到这一点，并对近期接触过新冠病毒且有非特异性症状的患者进行全面评估。
