Endocrinol Nutr. 2013;60(8):427---432 ENDOCRINOLOGÍA Y NUTRICIÓN www.elsevier.es/endo ORIGINAL ARTICLE Improvement in functional capacity after levothyroxine treatment in patients with chronic heart failure and subclinical hypothyroidism  Jorge Curotto Grasiosi a,* , Bruno Peressotti a , Rogelio A. Machado a , Eduardo C. Filipini a , Adriana Angel a , Jorge Delgado a , Gustavo A. Cortez Quiroga b , Carmen Rus Mansilla b , María del Mar Martínez Quesada b , Alejandro Degregorio a , Diego J. Cordero a , Marcelo Dak a , Carlos Izurieta a , Ricardo J. Esper a a Unidad de Insuficiencia Cardíaca, Hospital Militar Central, Buenos Aires, Argentina b Unidad de Cardiología, Hospital Alto Guadalquivir, Andújar (Jaén), Spain Received 4 December 2012; accepted 14 January 2013 Available online 15 November 2013 KEYWORDS Heart failure; Subclinical hypothyroidism; Functional capacity Abstract Aim: To assess whether levothyroxine treatment improves functional capacity in patients with chronic heart failure (New York Heart Association class I---III) and subclinical hypothyroidism. Methods: One hundred and sixty-three outpatients with stable chronic heart failure followed up for at least 6 months were enrolled. A physical examination was performed, and laboratory tests including thyroid hormone levels, Doppler echocardiogram, radionuclide ventriculography, and Holter monitoring were requested. Functional capacity was assessed by of the 6-min walk test. Patients with subclinical hypothyroidism were detected and, after undergoing the s6-min walk test, were given replacement therapy. When they reached normal thyrotropin (TSH) levels, the 6-min walk test was performed again. The distance walked in both tests was recorded, and the difference in meters covered by each patient was analyzed. Results: Prevalence of subclinical hypothyroidism in patients with heart failure was 13%. These patients walked 292 ± 63 m while they were hypothyroid and 350 ± 76 m when TSH levels returned to normal, a difference of 58 ± 11m (P < .011). Patients with normal baseline TSH levels showed no significant difference between the two 6-min walk tests. Conclusions: Patients with chronic heart failure and subclinical hypothyroidism significantly improved their physical performance when normal TSH levels were reached. © 2012 SEEN. Published by Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.  Please cite this article as: Curotto Grasiosi J, Peressotti B, Machado RA, Filipini EC, Angel A, Delgado J, et al. Mejoría de la capacidad funcional tras tratamiento con levotiroxina en pacientes con insuficiencia cardíaca crónica e hipotiroidismo subclínico. Endocrinol Nutr. 2013;60:427---432. ∗ Corresponding author. E-mail address: jorgecurotto@hotmail.com (J. Curotto Grasiosi). 2173-5093/$ – see front matter © 2012 SEEN. Published by Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved. Document downloaded from http://www.elsevier.es, day 15/01/2016. This copy is for personal use. Any transmission of this document by any media or format is strictly prohibited.