Lee Kyeongmin, Park Jaeyu, Lee Myeongcheol, Lee Hojae, Son Yejun, Kim Hyejun, Kang Jiseung, Choi Yujin, Rhee Sang Youl, Rahmati Masoud, Koyanagi Ai, Smith Lee, López Sánchez Guillermo F, Dragioti Elena, Woo Selin, Yon Dong Keon
Center for Digital Health, Medical Science Research Institute, Kyung Hee University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
Department of Regulatory Science, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, South Korea.
Heliyon. 2024 Oct 15;10(20):e39401. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39401. eCollection 2024 Oct 30.
Although thyroid disease is a common condition, there is limited research examining the prevalence of thyroid disease over a long period of time, including both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, we aimed to investigate sociodemographic aspects that might be associated with thyroid disease and how its prevalence has varied during the pandemic.
We assessed the prevalence of thyroid disease among Korean adults by using data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 1998 to 2021. We evaluated weighted prevalence and β-coefficients with 95 % CI for factors such as age, sex, residential area, education level, household income, perceived stress level, weight change, occupation category, and body mass index groups.
From 1998 to 2021, the prevalence of thyroid disease among 159,896 Korean adults (88,120 females [55.1 %]) aged 20 years and older exhibited an overall increasing trend. The weighted prevalence in the general population rose from 1.52 % (95 % CI, 1.41-1.64) in 1998-2005 to 3.84 % (3.30-4.39) in 2021, with a higher likelihood of thyroid disease exposure as age increased. In addition, females, individuals with lower education levels, those with high levels of perceived stress, those who gained weight, and those classified as overweight or obese emerged as vulnerable groups for thyroid disease. For the majority of subgroups, the change amid the effect of the pandemic on prevalence was minimal. However, the aged ≥60 years group showed a greater increase in prevalence during the pandemic than before the pandemic (β: 0.52 [95 % CI, 0.37-0.68]).
A nationwide representative study in South Korea revealed an increasing trend in the prevalence of thyroid disease over 24 years, particularly among the older population. Despite the minimal variation during the pandemic, our findings emphasize the need for targeted thyroid disease policies and further research, especially for specific subgroups such as the older population.
尽管甲状腺疾病是一种常见病症，但长期以来，对甲状腺疾病患病率的研究有限，包括在新冠疫情之前和期间。因此，我们旨在调查可能与甲状腺疾病相关的社会人口学因素，以及疫情期间其患病率的变化情况。
我们利用1998年至2021年韩国国民健康与营养检查调查的数据，评估了韩国成年人甲状腺疾病的患病率。我们评估了年龄、性别、居住地区、教育水平、家庭收入、感知压力水平、体重变化、职业类别和体重指数组等因素的加权患病率和95%置信区间的β系数。
1998年至2021年期间，159,896名20岁及以上的韩国成年人（88,120名女性[55.1%]）中，甲状腺疾病的患病率总体呈上升趋势。普通人群的加权患病率从1998 - 2005年的1.52%（95%置信区间，1.41 - 1.64）上升到2021年的3.84%（3.30 - 4.39），随着年龄增长，患甲状腺疾病的可能性更高。此外，女性、教育水平较低者、感知压力水平较高者、体重增加者以及被归类为超重或肥胖者成为甲状腺疾病的弱势群体。对于大多数亚组而言，疫情对患病率影响的变化极小。然而，60岁及以上年龄组在疫情期间的患病率增幅高于疫情之前（β：0.52[95%置信区间，0.37 - 0.68]）。
韩国一项全国性代表性研究显示，24年来甲状腺疾病患病率呈上升趋势，尤其是在老年人群中。尽管疫情期间变化极小，但我们的研究结果强调了制定针对性甲状腺疾病政策和进一步研究的必要性，特别是针对老年人群等特定亚组。
