More than 22 million people use Synthroid (levothyroxine), making it one of five top-selling medications in the United States. 

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It is a man-made (or synthetic) hormone taken by individuals with thyroid disorders, which is the gland responsible for controlling energy, weight, and hair growth. 

However, the researchers discovered that patients who use the drug lose bone density at a faster rate than their counterparts who are of similar weight, height, and health. 

The study focused only on a group of people who are already most susceptible to the adverse consequences of frail bones also referred to as osteoporosis which renders the affected individuals frail and prone to fall. 

However, the researchers from Johns Hopkins University urged adults of all ages who are taking the drug to do so after consulting their physicians. 

The authors cautioned that people already used Synthroid for a long time and that even the reason for the initial prescription let alone the necessity of continuing the use of this drug escapes them. 

According to Professor Shadpour Demehri, an expert in radiology at John Hopkins University in Maryland and study co-author, “Our study suggests that even when following current guidelines, levothyroxine use appears to be associated with greater bone loss in older adults,” Daily Mail reported. 

The findings of the research will be detailed later in the week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago. 

What more have the experts noted? 

In the study, the authors compared 81 patients, using levothyroxine and 364 non-users of levothyroxine. Participants were 73 years of age on average and had a mean thyroid-stimulating hormone level of 2.35. Normal ranges are measured to be 0.4-4.0 mU/L. 

According to the article, this was the case whether the patients had normal TSH readings or not. 

Adults being treated with levothyroxine, according to the co-author of the study, Dr Jennifer Mammen, an associate professor of endocrinology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, should consult a medic and get their thyroid function tests checked often. 

“A risk-benefit assessment should be conducted, weighing the strength of the indications for treatment against the potential adverse effects of levothyroxine in this population,” she added. 

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Epidemiological evidence delineates a surge in severe fungal infections, culminating in over 150 million cases annually and an alarming tally of nearly 1.7 million fatalities worldwide.

“This issue transcends individual patient concerns,” elucidated Thomas McCormick, PhD, a distinguished professor of dermatology hailing from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, located in Cleveland, and affiliated with University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. “The World Health Organization has classified it as a pervasive menace capable of wreaking havoc on entire healthcare infrastructures if left unaddressed.”

Drawing from their research insights, Dr. McCormick and Mahmoud Ghannoum, MSC, PhD, MBA, the esteemed director of the Center for Medical Mycology at Case Western, advocated for preemptive measures and mobilized the medical community to safeguard against MDR fungi, commencing with heightened awareness and educational endeavors.

“Healthcare practitioners must accord precedence to employing diagnostic assessments when confronted with unfamiliar fungal ailments,” emphasized Dr.Ghannoum. “Timely detection holds the potential to significantly ameliorate patient prognoses.”

Individuals undergoing immunosuppressive therapies subsequent to cancer treatments and transplant surgeries are particularly susceptible to MDR fungal infections, underscored the researchers.

The proliferation of MDR fungal strains, exemplified by Candida auris and Trichophyton indoline, poses a disconcerting conundrum warranting immediate attention, they underscored.

In a separate investigation, Dr.Ghannoum’s research cadre, in conjunction with the CDC, elucidated a case underscoring the drug-resistant attributes of T. indoline, coupled with its potential for sexual transmission.

To tackle the burgeoning public health challenge, Drs. McCormick and Ghannoum advocated for heightened awareness initiatives amongst healthcare personnel to foster a nuanced comprehension of the escalating prevalence of MDR infections. Furthermore, they advocated for the widespread adoption of diagnostic assessments to inform judicious testing practices and called for enhanced insurance coverage for such assessments.

Addressing the emergent quandary of antifungal resistance necessitates concerted endeavors from healthcare practitioners, scholars, policymakers, and the pharmaceutical sector to formulate and implement strategies for curtailing and preempting antifungal resistance, they asserted.

“The ultimate objective of these interventions,” asserted Dr.Ghannoum, “is to enhance the caliber of patient care by ensuring efficacious treatment modalities and forestalling the exacerbation of the quandary.”

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