HLA-A, -B, -C and -DR antigens in patients with Graves' disease and their correlation with signs and clinical course.

Among 78 consecutive patients with Graves' disease, an increased frequency of HLA-B8 and HLA-DR3 antigens was found. The relative risk for Graves' disease among individuals with these HLA antigens was calculated as 4.4 and 3.9, respectively. Thus, genes promoting the development of Graves' disease are clearly associated to the B8 and DR3 haplotypes. In groups of patients with different clinical expressions of the disease, such as thyroid hormone levels, autoantibodies and relapse rates, the frequency of B8 and DR3 antigens was found to be similar. Consequently, factors influencing the clinical expression and the course of the disease do not have a stronger association to these antigens.