Ru Zhao’s research while affiliated with National Institute of Clinical Research and other places

Objective There has been some confusion in earlier research on the connection between thyroid function and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This research is aimed to probe into the correlation between thyroid condition and the risk of PCOS from a new standpoint of thyroid hormone sensitivity. Methods This research comprised 415 females with PCOS from Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated with the Medical School of Nanjing University, and 137 non-PCOS individuals were selected as the normal control. Based on free thyroxine (FT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), we calculated the thyroid hormone sensitivity indices, which consist of Thyroid Feedback Quantile-based Index (TFQI), Thyroid-stimulating Hormone Index (TSHI), Thyrotroph Thyroxine Resistance Index (TT4RI) and Free Triiodothyronine /Free thyroxine (FT3/FT4). The binary logistic regression model was adopted to investigate the correlation between thyroid hormone sensitivity indices with the risk of PCOS. Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was employed to explore the association among thyroid-related measures with metabolic parameters in PCOS. Results Results of this research showed that females with PCOS had rising TFQI, TSHI, TT4RI, and FT3/FT4 levels compared with the control group. After adjustment for the impact of various covariates, there was no significant correlation between FT3/FT4 and the risk of PCOS; However, the odds ratio of the third and fourth vs. the first quartile of TFQI were 3.57(95% confidence interval [CI]:1.08,11.87) and 4.90(95% CI:1.38,17.38) respectively; The odds ratio of the fourth vs. the first quartile of TSHI was 5.35(95% CI:1.48,19.37); The odds ratio of the second vs. the first quartile of TT4RI was 0.27(95%CI 0.09,0.82). In addition, no significant correlation was observed between thyroid-related measures and metabolic measures in females with PCOS. Conclusions A reduction in the sensitivity of central thyroid hormone is closely correlated with a higher risk of PCOS. Further research is necessary to corroborate our findings and the supporting mechanisms.

Background We aimed to evaluate the distinctive effects of maternal lipids on adverse pregnancy outcomes between normal glucose tolerance (NGT) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) pregnancies. Methods This retrospective study analysed 434 NGT pregnancies and 416 GDM pregnancies. According to the adverse outcomes, NGT and GDM pregnancies were divided into two groups, respectively. The risk of GDM and adverse outcomes were estimated by logistic regression. Results Compared to the lowest triglycerides (TG) levels, intermediate TG levels and the highest TG levels were connected to the risk of GDM (1.00 vs. 2.5 (95% CI, 1.5–4.4), and 3.8 (95% CI, 2.0–7.1), respectively. In GDM, the significant effect of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and that of total cholesterol (TC) on several outcomes disappeared after adjustment for oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) fasting blood glucose and 1 h blood glucose. Besides, the effect of lipids on several outcomes was mainly noticed in GDM with relatively high glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) within the target range. Conclusions Maternal elevated lipid levels were associated with GDM and adverse outcomes. For GDM with HbA1c under the target range, stricter glycemic control is required if dyslipidemia presents.