Assessment of hepcidin and iron status in children with untreated newly diagnosed graves' hyperthyroidism.
4 affiliations
- 1Children Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Hematology Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.
- 2Clinical pathology Department- Faculty of Medicine, New Valley University, Al Kharga, Egypt.
- 3Mediclinic Middle east, Dubai, AUE, United Arab Emirates.
- 4Children Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Hematology Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt. [email protected].
Abstract
Background
Graves' disease (GD) is an autoimmune disease causing the overproduction of thyroid hormones from the thyroid gland. Hepcidin is an acute-phase protein and a key regulator of iron homeostasis. This study aimed to assess hepcidin and iron homeostasis parameters in children with newly diagnosed Graves' disease (GD).Methods
Forty-two children with newly diagnosed GD and 42 healthy controls were enrolled. Prior to commencing treatment, both patients and controls underwent assessments for free thyroxine (FreeT4 and FreeT3), thyrotropin receptor antibodies (TRAbs), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), iron, ferritin, and hepcidin levels.Results
Children with newly diagnosed GD had higher levels of hsCRP (p = 0.001), TRAb (p = 0.001), hepcidin (p = 0.001), and ferritin (p = 0.001) and lower serum iron (p = 0.001). Significant correlations were found between hepcidin and hsCRP (r = 0.526, p = 0.01), FreeT3 (r = 0.626, p = 0.001), ferritin (r = 0.711, p = 0.001), and TRAb (r = 0.427, p = 0.001). In multivariate regression analysis, the correlation between hepcidin and ferritin (OR = 2.5, 95% CI: 1.17-2.86, p = 0.006), TRAbs (OR = 2.3, 95% CI: 1.16-2.74, p = 0.008), hsCRP (OR = 4.3; 95% CI: 1.19-8.22; p = 0.003), and Free FreeT3 (OR = 3.5, 95% CI: 1.47-3.57, p = 0.001) was confirmed.Conclusion
Higher hepcidin levels and the strong positive correlation between hepcidin and TRAbs in children with newly diagnosed Graves' disease suggest a possible association between hepcidin and disease activity. However, further studies are needed to clarify whether altered hepcidin levels are a cause or a consequence of the disease process.
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BibTeX
@article{metwalley2026assessment,
title = {{Assessment of hepcidin and iron status in children with untreated newly diagnosed graves' hyperthyroidism.}},
author = {Kotb Abbass Metwalley and Hekma Saad Farghaly and Amira M Shalaby and Ghada Mohamed Saied and Mohamed A Hassan and Nahed A M Saleh and Mervat A M Youssef},
journal = {BMC pediatrics},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1186/s12887-026-07407-z},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972269},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Assessment of hepcidin and iron status in children with untreated newly diagnosed graves' hyperthyroidism.
AU - Kotb Abbass Metwalley
AU - Hekma Saad Farghaly
AU - Amira M Shalaby
AU - Ghada Mohamed Saied
AU - Mohamed A Hassan
AU - Nahed A M Saleh
AU - Mervat A M Youssef
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/20
JO - BMC pediatrics
DO - 10.1186/s12887-026-07407-z
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972269
AB - Background Graves' disease (GD) is an autoimmune disease causing the overproduction of thyroid hormones from the thyroid gland. Hepcidin is an acute-phase protein and a key regulator of iron homeostasis. This study aimed to assess hepcidin and iron homeostasis parameters in children with newly diagnosed Graves' disease (GD).Methods Forty-two children with newly diagnosed GD and 42 healthy controls were enrolled. Prior to commencing treatment, both patients and controls underwent assessments for free thyroxine (FreeT4 and FreeT3), thyrotropin receptor antibodies (TRAbs), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), iron, ferritin, and hepcidin levels.Results Children with newly diagnosed GD had higher levels of hsCRP (p = 0.001), TRAb (p = 0.001), hepcidin (p = 0.001), and ferritin (p = 0.001) and lower serum iron (p = 0.001). Significant correlations were found between hepcidin and hsCRP (r = 0.526, p = 0.01), FreeT3 (r = 0.626, p = 0.001), ferritin (r = 0.711, p = 0.001), and TRAb (r = 0.427, p = 0.001). In multivariate regression analysis, the correlation between hepcidin and ferritin (OR = 2.5, 95% CI: 1.17-2.86, p = 0.006), TRAbs (OR = 2.3, 95% CI: 1.16-2.74, p = 0.008), hsCRP (OR = 4.3; 95% CI: 1.19-8.22; p = 0.003), and Free FreeT3 (OR = 3.5, 95% CI: 1.47-3.57, p = 0.001) was confirmed.Conclusion Higher hepcidin levels and the strong positive correlation between hepcidin and TRAbs in children with newly diagnosed Graves' disease suggest a possible association between hepcidin and disease activity. However, further studies are needed to clarify whether altered hepcidin levels are a cause or a consequence of the disease process.
SN - 1471-2431
ER -