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document
Thyroid stimulating antibodies : an aid to the strategy of treatment of Graves ' disease ? In 1976 we initiated a prospective study to specify the usefulness of thyroid stimulating antibody ( TSAb ) determinations in predicting the outcome of post-antithyroid drug treatment for Graves ' disease . This study was carried out on 55 patients , who were either treated for six ( n = 16 ) or 18 months ( n = 39 ) and followed up for an additional two-year period . TSAb was determined on whole serum in 29 patients before and at the end of treatment , and in 26 patients at the end of treatment only . These determinations were carried out using a sensitive and reproducible microassay based on cAMP accumulation in human thyroid cell cultures . Before treatment , TSAb ranging from 170 to 1529 % was present in 28/29 patients and reached significantly low levels at the end of treatment whatever its duration . TSAb was undetectable in 24/55 patients at the end of treatment . 8/16 'short-treated ' and 18/39 'long-treated ' patients remained in remission . As expected , initial TSAb levels had no predictive value . End-treatment TSAb values , when low ( less than 350 % ) or negative did not correlate with later evolution : in these 39 patients , relapse rate was 41 % . In contrast , 13/16 patients with end-treatment TSAb greater than 350 % relapsed . Relapses tended to occur earlier in patients with the highest TSAb levels . TSAb determined again during follow-up was negative in each of the 18 patients in remission , and positive in 8/10 patients at the time of relapse , whatever its level at the end of the drug course . This study confirms that only end-treatment TSAb levels are predictive of relapse . ( ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS )
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Intervention_Pharmacological
Thyroid stimulating antibodies
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Intervention_Pharmacological
thyroid stimulating antibody ( TSAb )
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Intervention_Pharmacological
post-antithyroid drug treatment
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Intervention_Pharmacological
TSAb
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Outcome_Physical
TSAb
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Outcome_Physical
TSAb
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Outcome_Physical
TSAb
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Outcome_Physical
remission .
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Outcome_Physical
initial TSAb levels
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Outcome_Physical
End-treatment TSAb values
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Outcome_Physical
relapse rate
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Outcome_Physical
end-treatment TSAb
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Outcome_Physical
Relapses
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Outcome_Physical
TSAb levels
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Outcome_Physical
TSAb
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Participant_Condition
Graves ' disease
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Participant_Sample-size
55
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Participant_Sample-size
16
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Participant_Sample-size
39
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Participant_Sample-size
29
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Participant_Sample-size
26
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Participant_Sample-size
18
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Participant_Sample-size
8/10