AUTHOR=Taroza Saulius , Plamondon Helene , Podlipskyte Aurelija , Kazukauskiene Nijole , Linares Nicolas Francisco Narvaez , Poitras Marilou , Burkauskas Julius , Mickuviene Narseta 

TITLE=Associations of reverse triiodothyronine serum levels with anxiety, depression, and health related quality of life after experiencing acute ischemic stroke

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 15 - 2024

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2024.1474490

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2024.1474490

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=AimThis study intended to explore associations of reverse triiodothyronine (rT3) with emotional disturbances and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after experiencing acute ischemic stroke (AIS).Materials and methodsSerum samples from individuals with AIS were collected on admission to three Lithuania stroke centers and investigated for free tetraiodothyronine, free triiodothyronine (fT3), rT3, and thyroid stimulating hormone levels. At discharge, emotional disturbance was evaluated using the Hospital Depression and Anxiety Scale (HADS), and HRQoL using the EQ-5D-5L scale.ResultsAnalyses included 159 individuals (59.7% male and 40.3% female; mean (SD) aged 66.4 [10.3] years), 52.83% of which showed increased rT3 levels upon admission. After adjustment for age, sex, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores, previous stroke, modified Rankin Scale before AIS ≤ 2, and diabetes mellitus, multivariable linear regression revealed negative associations of rT3 with HADS total score (β = −0.163; p = 0.046) and HADS-D subscale score (β = −0.187; p = 0.019). Analyses supported a positive relationship between the fT3 ratio to rT3 with HADS-D score (β = 0.157; p = 0.046) and rT3, rT3 × fT3 product with EQ-5D index score (β = 0.157; p = 0.044 and β = 0.179; p = 0.023, respectively).ConclusionWe found that individuals who experienced AIS and had higher levels of rT3 at hospital admission had less emotional disturbance and better HRQoL when discharged.