The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 84, No. 2 499-503
Copyright © 1999 by The Endocrine Society
Comparison of Radioiodine with Radioiodine plus Lithium in the Treatment of Graves Hyperthyroidism1
Fausto Bogazzi,
Luigi Bartalena,
Sandra Brogioni,
Giovanna Scarcello,
Alessandro Burelli,
Alberto Campomori,
Luca Manetti,
Giuseppe Rossi,
Aldo Pinchera and
Enio Martino
Dipartimento di Endocrinologia e Metabolismo, Ortopedia e
Traumatologia, Medicina del Lavoro (F.B., L.B., S.B., G.S., A.B., A.C.,
L.M., A.P., E.M.), University of Pisa, 56122 Pisa, Italy; and Reparto
di Epidemiologia e Biostatistica, Istituto di Fisiologia Clinica
(G.R.), National Research Council (C.N.R.), 56100 Pisa,
Italy.
Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Enio Martino, M.D., Dipartimento di Endocrinologia e Metabolismo, Ortopedia e Traumatologia, Medicina del Lavoro, University of Pisa, Ospedale di Cisanello, Via Paradisa, 2, 56122, Pisa, Italy.
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Abstract
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Effectiveness of radioiodine for Graves hyperthyroidism depends also
on its intrathyroidal persistence. The latter is enhanced by lithium by
blocking iodine release from the thyroid. One hundred ten patients with
Graves hyperthyroidism were randomly assigned to treatment with
radioiodine or radioiodine plus lithium, stratified according to goiter
size (
40 or >40 mL) and evaluated for changes in thyroid function
and goiter size, at monthly intervals, for 12 months.
Cure of hyperthyroidism occurred in 33 of 46 patients (72%) treated
with radioiodine and in 45 of 54 patients (83%) treated with
radioiodine plus lithium. The probability of curing hyperthyroidism was
higher and its control prompter (P = 0.02) in the
radioiodine-plus-lithium group. Patients with
40-mL goiters had
similar persistence of hyperthyroidism (13%), but lithium-treated
patients had hyperthyroidism controlled earlier (P
= 0.04). Among patients with >40-mL goiters, hyperthyroidism was cured
in 6 of 15 patients (40%) treated with radioiodine alone and in 12 of
16 patients (75%) treated with radioiodine plus lithium
(P = 0.07), and cure occurred earlier in the latter
(P = 0.05). Goiters shrank in both groups
(P < 0.0001), more effectively and promptly
(P < 0.0005) in the radioiodine-plus-lithium
group. Serum free T4 and T3 levels
increased shortly after therapy only in the radioiodine group
(P < 0.01).
Lithium carbonate enhances the effectiveness of radioiodine therapy, in
terms of prompter control of hyperthyroidism, in patients with small or
large goiters. In the latter group, lithium also increases the rate of
permanent control of hyperthyroidism.
 |
Introduction
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RADIOIODINE therapy is a well-established
and effective treatment for Graves hyperthyroidism. The primary goal
of radioiodine therapy is to restore euthyroidism, although thyroid
ablation and hypothyroidism may represent a desired therapeutic
outcome, especially in the presence of ophthalmopathy (1, 2, 3, 4). The
effectiveness of radioiodine is affected by several factors, including
previous treatment with antithyroid drugs, goiter volume, 24-h
thyroidal radioactive iodine uptake (RAIU), and the rapid release of
radioiodine after incorporation into thyroglobulin (Tg) (5, 6, 7, 8).
Iodine blocks the release of organic iodine from the thyroid gland, but
it is not used as an adjunct to radioiodine because it reduces
thyroidal uptake and recycling of radioiodine (9). Lithium blocks the
release of organic iodine and thyroid hormone from the thyroid gland
without affecting thyroidal RAIU (10, 11, 12, 13). Accordingly, its use as an
adjunct to radioiodine in the therapy of thyrotoxicosis was postulated,
but information on this subject is limited (14, 15). To address this
question, we undertook a blind, randomized, controlled study evaluating
the efficacy of radioiodine therapy alone, and radioiodine combined
with lithium, in Graves hyperthyroidism. The results of this study
indicate that the addition of lithium to radioiodine therapy is
associated with a more prompt control of hyperthyroidism and, in
patients with large goiters, with a higher degree of its permanent
correction.
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Subjects and Methods
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Study groups
During the period 19941996, we enrolled 110 patients with
newly diagnosed, untreated Graves disease, age more than 20 yr,
recent onset of hyperthyroidism (
6 months), and nonsevere or absent
Graves ophthalmopathy. Patients with severe Graves ophthalmopathy,
previous treatment of hyperthyroidism with radioiodine or surgery,
contraindications to glucocorticoids, or lithium treatment were
excluded. Patients were stratified according to the baseline goiter
volume (
40 or >40 mL); although somewhat arbitrary, this value was
suggested by a survey of the American Thyroid Association as ideal for
radioiodine treatment (16). Patients were treated with methimazole for
34 months to restore euthyroidism and then randomly assigned to
treatment with radioiodine (n = 55) or with radioiodine plus
lithium (900 mg/day for 6 days, starting on the day of radioiodine
administration) (n = 55). Methimazole was withdrawn 5 days before
radioiodine therapy. The dose of radioiodine was: 7 MBq per gram
of estimated thyroid tissue and corrected for the 24-h RAIU. Each
patient received a short course of prednisone to prevent a possible
progression of Graves ophthalmopathy, as previously reported (17, 18). Prednisone was started 21 days after radioiodine treatment to
avoid interference with radioiodine recirculation. One patient from the
radioiodine and lithium group and 9 patients from the radioiodine group
were excluded shortly after enrollment because they refused subsequent
controls. The study was approved by the institutional review committee,
and all patients gave informed consent.
Evaluation
Baseline evaluation included ophthalmologic examination,
evaluation of thyroid function, thyroid scan, 24-h RAIU, thyroid
ultrasonography, white cell count, differential count, hematocrit, mean
corpuscolar volume, platelet count, BUN, creatinine,
serum electrolytes, urine analysis, and electrocardiogram. Thyroid
ultrasonography was performed by 1 examiner (F. Bogazzi), who did not
know the treatment administrated to the patient; thyroid volume was
determined at 0, 7, 14, and 30 days and 2, 3, 6, and 12 months.
Serum free T4 (FT4) and T3 (FT3), and Tg levels
were measured at 0, 7, 14, and 30 days after radioiodine and then every
month for all of the follow-up period. Patients were considered cured
when they became stably euthyroid or developed permanent
hypothyroidism. Euthyroidism was considered stable when it persisted
for at least the 12 months after the first evidence, implying that
patients who became euthyroid at 12 months were followed for an
additional 12 months. Hypothyroidism or persistent hyperthyroidism
after radioiodine treatment were corrected within 34 weeks, by
administration of T4 or methimazole, as appropriate. A
second dose of radioiodine was administered to patients with persistent
hyperthyroidism at the end of the follow-up period. Serum lithium level
was measured at the 6th day of treatment. Possible symptoms of lithium
toxicity were looked for by a questionnaire filled out by each patient
15 days after radioiodine treatment.
Evaluation of thyroid function and volume
Thyroid function was assessed by measuring serum FT4 and FT3
(Lisophase kits, Laboratori Bouty, Sesto S. Giovanni, Italy) and serum
TSH (Auto-DELFIA Wallac, Gaithersburg, MD). The normal ranges were:
serum FT4, 0.61.8 ng/dL (8.423.2 pmol/L); FT3, 0.250.55 ng/dL
(3.88.4 pmol/L); and TSH, 0.43.7 mU/L. Serum TSH-receptor antibody
was determined by radioreceptor assay (TRAK assay, BRAHMS Diagnostica,
Berlin, Germany; normal values, less than 5U/L). Serum Tg (Sorin
Biomedica, Saluggia, Italy; normal value < 330 mg/L), serum
anti-Tg antibody (Sorin Biomedica; undetectable in normal
controls), and serum anti-TPO antibody (Serodia, Tokyo, Japan;
undetectable in normal controls) were also determined by commercial
kits. Urinary iodine excretion was measured using an autoanalyzer
apparatus (Technicon, Rome, Italy). The median urinary iodine
excretion in our area is 110 µg/L. Serum lithium concentration was
measured by a standard chemical method; therapeutic levels for
psychiatric disorders ranged from 0.61.2 mEq/L. Thyroid volume
was measured by ultrasound using a 7.5 MHz linear transducer and
calculated by the ellipsoid model: width x length x
thickness x 0.52 for each lobe (19, 20).
Statistical analysis
Baseline values were expressed as mean ± SD
(or ± SE, where specified) for quantitative
variables. The baseline characteristics of the two groups were compared
by unpaired t test and by
-square test. The control of
hyperthyroidism in the two groups was represented using survival curves
at 12 months, estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Comparisons between
nonremission curves were performed by the Mantel-Cox (MC) test and by
the Breslow-Gean-Wilcoxon (BGW) test. The
-square test and Fisher
exact test were used to compare nonremission rates at 12 months.
Differences between the two groups in thyroid volume, serum FT4, FT3,
and Tg levels (at each interval during the study period) were evaluated
by ANCOVA, taking baseline value as covariate. The time trend
within each treatment was evaluated by ANOVA with repeated measures.
Multiple comparisons with basal values were performed by the modified
Dunnetts test (21).
 |
Results
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There were no significant differences in the baseline clinical and
biochemical characteristics of the two groups (Table 1
). Most
patients came from iodine-deficient areas, as assessed by the low
urinary iodine excretion (Table 1
). Cure of hyperthyroidism was
achieved in 33 of the 46 patients (72%) treated with radioiodine alone
and in 45 of the 54 patients (83%) treated with radioiodine plus
lithium (Table 2
). Patients treated with radioiodine plus lithium had a
higher probability of being cured than patients treated with
radioiodine alone (P = 0.03, by MC test), although the
2 groups did not significantly differ at the end of the study
(P = 0.16) (Fig. 1
). In
addition, the probability of controlling hyperthyroidism during the
first months after radioiodine treatment was higher in the
radioiodine-plus-lithium group (P = 0.02, by BGW test).
Among the patients with
40-mL goiters (31 treated with radioiodine
and 38 with radioiodine plus lithium), 4 (13%) and 5 (13%),
respectively, had persistent hyperthyroidism (Table 2
). However,
patients treated with radioiodine plus lithium had a more rapid control
of hyperthyroidism (P = 0.04, by BGW test) (Fig. 1
).
Among the patients with >40-mL goiters, hyperthyroidism was cured in 6
of the 15 patients (40%) treated with radioiodine and in 12 of the 16
(75%) treated with radioiodine plus lithium (P = 0.07)
(Table 2
). Patients treated with radioiodine plus lithium had a higher
probability of controlling hyperthyroidism promptly than did patients
treated with radioiodine alone (P = 0.05, by MC test;
P = 0.08, by BGW test) (Fig. 1
).

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Figure 1. Kaplan-Meier estimates of the proportion of
patients who remained hyperthyroid. The overall outcome of the two
groups of patients was assessed by the MC test (P =
0.03, top panel; P = 0.18,
middle panel; P = 0.05, lower
panel). The rapidity of cure (i.e. the prompt
control of hyperthyroidism) was assessed by the BGW test
(P = 0.02, top panel;
P = 0.04, middle panel;
P = 0.08, lower panel). All patients
in each group completed the 12-month period of observation.
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Goiter volumes were similar in the two groups at baseline (35 ±
21 mL in the radioiodine group, 38 ± 22 mL in the
radioiodine-plus-lithium group, P = 0.48). Goiter
shrinkage occurred in both groups during the study period
(P < 0.0001) (Fig. 2
)
and was more pronounced, at each time, in the radioiodine-plus-lithium
group (P < 0.0005). Among patients with >40-mL
goiters, adjunct of lithium was followed by a reduction of goiter size
from 66 ± 21 mL to 15 ± 9 mL (P < 0.0001);
this reduction was greater than that observed after radioiodine alone,
in which the goiter shrank from 58 ± 17 mL to 28 ± 11 mL
(P < 0.005). Goiter shrinkage was significantly
different in the two groups at 7 days (P = 0.03),
during, and at the end of the study period (P < 0.005,
at each time). Patients with
40-mL goiters had similar goiter volume
at the end of the study (8 ± 6 mL in the radioiodine group,
7 ± 6 mL in the radioiodine-plus-lithium group). Goiter shrinkage
occurred in both groups (P < 0.0001), but it occurred
earlier, and it was higher at 7, 14, 30, 60, and 90 days after therapy,
in the patients treated with radioiodine plus lithium
(P < 0.0005, P < 0.002,
P < 0.002, P < 0.002, and
P = 0.02, respectively).

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Figure 2. Mean changes, from baseline, in the thyroid
volume. Bars indicate the SD. All patients
in each group completed the 12-month period of observation.
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Patients treated with radioiodine had a significant increase in serum
FT4 [from 2.1 ± 2.0 ng/dL to 2.8 ± 1.7 ng/dL
(P < 0.01)] and FT3 [from 0.7 ± 0.6 ng/dL to
0.9 ± 0.7 ng/dL (P < 0.01)], 1 week after
radioiodine therapy (Fig. 3
). Such an
increase was not observed in the patients treated with radioiodine plus
lithium. Serum Tg was measured in anti-Tg-negative patients (n =
10 in the radioiodine group, n = 17 in the
radioiodine-plus-lithium group). Serum Tg levels, after 1 week,
increased from 320 ± 467 ng/mL to 705 ± 887 ng/mL in the
radioiodine group (P
0.05), whereas they did not change in the
radioiodine-plus-lithium group (Fig. 3
).

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Figure 3. Mean changes, from the baseline, in the
serum free FT4, FT3, and Tg levels. Bars indicate the
SE. On the left side is shown the scale for
serum FT4 and FT3; and on the right side, for serum Tg.
Serum Tg was measured in anti-Tg-negative patients.
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Mean serum lithium concentration was 0.3 ± 0.1 mEq/L in
the lithium-treated patients, below the therapeutic range. Only 1 of
the 54 patients experienced mild nausea, which did not require
treatment discontinuation. No patients had a worsening of eye signs
during the follow-up study.
 |
Discussion
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Radioiodine therapy is a well-established treatment for Graves
hyperthyroidism. Its efficacy can be affected by several factors,
including the short persistence of radioiodine in the thyroid gland. In
hyperthyroid Graves patients, RAIU is enhanced by TSH-receptor
antibody (22); however, radioiodine is also rapidly discharged because
of its increased turnover. The effectiveness of radioiodine therapy may
be reduced by pretreatment with propylthiouracil but not with
methimazole (23). Lithium can significantly affect the kinetics of
iodine by reducing its release from the thyroid gland, thus increasing
its retention (11, 24). However, lithium is not commonly used to
potentiate the therapeutic effect of radioiodine therapy. Beneficial
effects of lithium, in combination with radioiodine, were reported in
cases of thyroid carcinoma (25, 26, 27) and in only one nonrandomized study
in Graves disease (14, 15). The latter study, carried out in patients
with 35- to 55-g goiters, indicated that the addition of lithium to
radioiodine did not produce a higher rate of cure after a 3-yr
follow-up period (15). The results of our study showed that radioiodine
plus lithium allows a more rapid control of hyperthyroidism than
radioiodine alone. This effect was evident both in patients with small
(
40 mL) goiters and in those with large (>40 mL) goiters. In the
latter subgroup, the addition of lithium was also associated with a
greater degree of cure of hyperthyroidism. However, in this subgroup of
patients, the recurrence or persistence of hyperthyroidism was high,
and it reached 60% in those treated with radioiodine alone. This might
be explained, at least in part, by the fact that most patients came
from iodine-deficient areas. In patients with large goiters, but
contraindications to thyroidectomy (i.e. cardiac disorders),
lithium might represent a useful adjunct to radioiodine to achieve,
more rapidly, a permanent control of hyperthyroidism. In this regard,
an additional important effect of lithium addition was the lack of
serum FT4 and FT3 surge which was observed shortly after radioiodine
therapy. This effect might be related to radioiodine-induced
destruction, as suggested by the concomitant rise in serum Tg
concentrations, or to the prevention of thyroid hormone surge after
antithyroid drug withdrawal. This effect might be particularly
beneficial in older patients with an underlying cardiac disease. The
combined treatment with radioiodine plus lithium might also be
favorable for Graves ophthalmopathy, because of the lower risk of
recurrence of hyperthyroidism, which is known to affect negatively the
course of eye disease (4).
Finally, the addition of lithium was associated with an overall greater
shrinkage of large goiters, which occurred especially during the first
weeks after radioiodine treatment. Thus, although thyroidectomy remains
the first-choice treatment in Graves patients with large goiters, the
use of lithium may increase the efficacy of radioiodine therapy also in
patients with large goiters.
Side effects of short-term lithium therapy were virtually absent. We,
therefore, suggest the adjunct of lithium to radioiodine therapy for
Graves hyperthyroidism in patients with large goiters and
contraindications to thyroidectomy, and in patients with active
ophthalmopathy or cardiac disorders (irrespective of goiter size).
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Footnotes
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1 Presented in abstract form at the 24th European Thyroid Meeting,
Munich, German, August 30-September 3, 1997. This work was supported,
in part, by grants from the University of Pisa (Fondi dAteneo). 
Received August 6, 1998.
Revised October 5, 1998.
Accepted October 23, 1998.
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