Levothyroxine Replacement Dose for Primary Hypothyroidism Decreases with Age

Abstract
Twenty-three elderly (older than 65) and 44 younger ambulatory adult patients with primary hypothyroidism were studied to ascertain the dose of levothyroxine needed for complete replacement in relation to age. The elderly patients (average age, 75.7 yr) needed an average of 118 .mu.g/day, whereas the younger patients (average age, 48.1 yr) needed 158 .mu.g/day. Thyroxine requirement may decrease continuously with age, reflecting the progressive decrease in thyroxine degradation rate with age.

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: