mparative evaluation of morning versus evening dose of levothyroxine in the treatment of hypothyroidism

Abstract

Introduction: Hypothyroidism is a common endocrine disorder that results from thyroid hormone deficiency. The prevalence of overt hypothyroidism increases with age, with more than 10% of women older than 60 years having subclinical hypothyroidism. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the comparison of the morning versus evening dose of levothyroxine in the treatment of hypothyroidism. Methodology: 152 patients with previously untreated primary hypothyroidism were divided into morning (Group 1) and evening (Group 2) dosing groups and evaluated for change in biochemical profile, physical functioning, and quality of life over the course of twelve study weeks. Results: At the end of 12 weeks, 70 (90.90%) subjects from Group 1 and 72 (96%) from Group 2 reached euthyroidism. At evaluation, symptoms and total clinical prescriptions improved in both groups at the end of 6 and 12 weeks. A significant improvement in thyroid profile was demonstrated in both groups at the end of 6 and 12 weeks (P value <.0001). Conclusion: In the between-group comparison, no significant differences were observed in the thyroid profile at 6 and 12 weeks between the morning and evening dose groups. A similar dose of levothyroxine was required to achieve euthyroidism in both groups. Although early restoration of euthyroidism was reduced in the evening group, the difference compared to the morning group was not statistically significant. In the evaluation of the quality of life, a statistically significant improvement was demonstrated in several parameters in both groups. Therefore, we infer from the study that the evening dose is as effective as the morning dose and provides an alternative dosing regimen. Study area: Health Sciences.