Causal associations between thyroid dysfunction and COVID-19 susceptibility and severity: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study

Abstract

BackgroundObservational studies have reported an association between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) risk and thyroid dysfunction, but without a clear causal relationship. We attempted to evaluate the association between thyroid function and COVID-19 risk using a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis.MethodsSummary statistics on the characteristics of thyroid dysfunction (hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism) were obtained from the ThyroidOmics Consortium. Genome-wide association study statistics for COVID-19 susceptibility and its severity were obtained from the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative, and severity phenotypes included hospitalization and very severe disease in COVID-19 participants. The inverse variance-weighted (IVW) method was used as the primary analysis method, supplemented by the weighted-median (WM), MR-Egger, and MR-PRESSO methods. Results were adjusted for Bonferroni correction thresholds.ResultsThe forward MR estimates show no effect of thyroid dysfunction on COVID-19 susceptibility and severity. The reverse MR found that COVID-19 susceptibility was the suggestive risk factor for hypothyroidism (IVW: OR = 1.577, 95% CI = 1.065–2.333, P = 0.022; WM: OR = 1.527, 95% CI = 1.042–2.240, P = 0.029), and there was lightly association between COVID-19 hospitalized and hypothyroidism (IVW: OR = 1.151, 95% CI = 1.004–1.319, P = 0.042; WM: OR = 1.197, 95% CI = 1.023-1.401, P = 0.023). There was no evidence supporting the association between any phenotype of COVID-19 and hyperthyroidism.ConclusionOur results identified that COVID-19 might be the potential risk factor for hypothyroidism. Therefore, patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 should strengthen the monitoring of thyroid function.

Subclinical Hypothyroidism among Patients with COVID-19 Infection in a Tertiary Care Centre: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

“… 8 A recent study concluded that COVID-19 susceptibility and its severity might increase the risk of hypothyroidism including subclinical hypothyroidism. 9 , 10 This is similar to another study conducted in Bosnia, where they found a significant difference in the number of patients with hypothyroidism and subclinical hypothyroidism in 2020 and 2021 in comparison to 2019. 11 About 78.3% of patients had subclinical hypothyroidism 2 months post-COVID-19 infection in those with thyroid dysfunction which the persisted in 33.6% of the subjects of the patients after one month of follow up which was higher compared to our study.…”

The Influence of Autoimmune Thyroid Diseases on Viral Pneumonia Development, Including COVID-19: A Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Study

“…These findings are in alignment with previous cross-sectional studies [ 12 , 62 , 63 , 64 ], indicating that alterations in isolated thyroid function indicators alone may not be sufficient to reliably predict the development of viral pneumonia or COVID-19. Prior to this study, four MR investigations examined the relationship between thyroid hormones and COVID-19, utilizing data from the fifth round of the Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases (HGI) releases [ 31 , 65 , 66 , 67 ]. In 2023, Sun et al employed an MR model to assess the causal link between TSH levels and three COVID-19 phenotypes and concluded that there was no association between TSH and COVID-19 [ 65 ], a conclusion consistent with our research.…”

Causal relationship between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and respiratory tuberculosis susceptibility: A two-sample Bayesian weighted Mendelian randomization study

“…To test for horizontal pleiotropy, we used MR-Egger intercept and MR-pleiotropy residual sum and outlier (MR-PRESSO) global test methods [24]. If the P value is > 0.05 and the MR Egger intercept term tends to zero as the sample size increases, this indicates the absence of horizontal pleiotropy [25]. Besides, we used MR-Egger and inverse variance weighted (IVW) in Cochran's Q statistic to test the heterogeneity of genetic IVs and provide evidence of heterogeneity due to pleiotropy or other causes [26].…”