Effect of low dose thyroxine with antithyroid drug on recurrence rate of Graves disease

Aim: To observe the recurrence rate of Graves disease(GD) treated with antithyroid drugs(ATD) only or combined with low dose thyroxine. Methods: Eighty-six patients newly diagnosed as Graves disease were treated with antithyroid drugs (5~10 mg/d methimazole or 50~100 mg/d propylthiouracil )and then randomly distributed into two groups: group treated with ATD and group treated with ATD combined with low dose thyroxine (25~50 μg/d L-T_4 ). The total process of treatement lasted 24 months, and the follow-up survey was conducted to all patients for 1 year after the withdrawal of drugs. Results: Compared with that before treatment the positive rate of TSH receptor antibody (TRAb) were significantly lower at the end of treatment in both groups(P0.01) and the recurrence rate were similar 1 year after the withdrawal of drugs. The patients who relapsed had more severe goiter,higher ophthalmopathy rate,and higher positive rate of TRAb at the end of treatment in both groups(P0.01). Conclusion: The treatment of Graves disease with ATD plus L-T_4 can not reduce the recurrence rate.