A STUDY ON CUTANEOUS MANIFESTATIONS OF HYPOTHYROIDISM IN A TERTIARY HOSPITAL IN SOUTH INDIA

BACKGROUND: Endocrinological disorders occasionally present with cutaneous manifestations. Thyroid hormonal abnormalities are frequently associated with abnormalities of the skin, hair and the nails. AIM: To study the various dermatological manifestations of hypothyroidism and to identify various associations with hypothyroidism in a tertiary hospital in South India from September 2014 to March 2015. RESULTS: In a total of 56 patients studied, cutaneous changes were seen in 83.92 percent of the patients. Male is to female ratio of hypothyroid patients studied was 1: 4.6. 17.85 percent of the total patients were males and 66.07 percent of the female patients showed cutaneous features of hypothyroidism. The commonest general symptoms seen in our study were weight gain and fatigue. Xerosis/Ichthyosis, pedal oedema, facial puffiness and hair changes were the common cutaneous features seen in our study. Urticaria, vitiligo, acanthosis nigricans, melasma and pemphigus foliaceous were the few cutaneous associations of hypothyroidism in our study whereas diabetes mellitus, microcytic hypochromic anaemia and hyper-cholesterolaemia were the systemic features associated with hypothyroidism in our study. CONCLUSION: Patient with hypothyroidism most commonly present with xerosis/ichthyosis and pedal oedema and more commonly associated with urticaria, vitiligo, acanthosis nigricans and melasma.