ESPE Abstracts

Background: First line treatment for thyrotoxicosis is thionamide (TA) antithyroid drug therapy. The TA used is usually Carbimazole in the UK. TA can be administered in a relatively large 'blocking' dose that prevents endogenous thyroid hormone synthesis, requiring thyroid hormone replacement (block and replace or BR), or in a smaller dose that renders the patient euthyroid (dose titration or DT). The American Thyroid Association (ATA) recommends DT be...

Objective: Remission rates in young people with Graves’ hyperthyroidism are 25% or less after a 2-yr course of thionamide antithyroid drug (ATD). Immunomodulatory agents could potentially improve outcome by facilitating immune tolerance. We wanted to explore whether rituximab, a B lymphocyte depleting agent, would increase remission rates when administered with a short course of ATD.Design: This was an investigator-...