SOME EFFECTS OF MAGNESIUM LOADING IN PATIENTS WITH THYROID DISORDERS*

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Abstract
The effects of 1.0 Gm. of Mg++ administered intravenously twice daily were studied in 1 euthyroid patient, 2 patients with primary myxedema and 2 patients with hyperthyroidism. There was no change in the basal metabolic rate in either the euthyroid or the hyperthyroid patients; magnesium given for three days following an injection of triiodothyronine (T3) in the hypothyroid patients did not block the calorigenic effect of T3. No consistent alterations of the urinary excretion of nitrogen or phosphorus were noted and the phosphaturic effect of T3 was not inhibited by magnesium. Variable amounts of magnesium were retained by each patient. In all 5 patients, a marked increase in urinary calcium excretion followed infusion of magnesium; in 4 patients, the serum calcium level was normal or low, whereas in the fifth patient it was elevated. These studies do not appear to indicate any consistent antagonistic effect of magnesium on the peripheral functions of thyroid hormone in man; further studies are necessary for clarification of the relationship between magnesium and calcium.