Since the first publication, more than 40 years ago, laboratory tests for the presence of antibodies (Ab) to thyroid antigens (Ag) have played a pivotal position in the diagnosis of thyroid diseases. Thyroid is a common target for autoimmune diseases, hence the interest in the definition of the thyroid Ag that could be involved in the process. The first Ag to be recognized was thyroglobulin, followed by the “microsomal Ag”, later identified with thyroid peroxidase, the TSH receptor and, more […]

Laboratory tests are essential for the diagnosis and follow-up of autoimmune and neoplastic thyroid diseases. The most important test for the etiologic diagnosis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, a disease with high prevalence in the population, is the determination of anti-thyroperoxidase antibodies (A-TPO), which is also useful for the diagnosis of Graves’ disease, for predicting risk of hypothyroidism in sub-clinical hypothyroidism and for predicting postpartum thyroiditis in at-risk women. Another very useful test in autoimmune diseases is the determination of anti-TSH receptor […]