Abstract:Thyroid disease is one of the most common diseases in the elderly. Population-and clinical epidemiology-based studies have shown that the prevalence of thyroid diseases in the elderly is different from general adults, showing a unique "high and low" phenomenon: the prevalence of clinical hypothyroidism and subclinical hypothyroidism and thyroid nodules is higher; the prevalence of thyroid cancer is relatively low, whereas the recurrence rate and mortality are higher. Female, iodine deficiency, positive thyroid autoantibodies, disturbance of glucose and lipid metabolism increase the risk of thyroid diseases. Therefore, understanding the epidemiological characteristics of thyroid diseases in the elderly and identifying relevant risk factors will help promote the standardized management of thyroid diseases in the older population.
