Hashimoto’s thyroiditis

PubMed, the Internet portal of biomedical and life sciences literature, indexed an interesting article, entitled “Hashimoto’s thyroiditis associated with idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis: case report and review of the literature.” (Int J Clin Pract. 2006 Aug 2). Authors are Pizzini AM, Corrado S, Radighieri E, et al, from the Department of Internal Medicine, Endocrinology Unit, University of Modenaand Reggio Emilia, Italy. Idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis (IRF) is a rare disease of unknown origin, characterised by an inflammatory proliferative fibrosing process occurring in the retroperitoneum. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a form of chronic thyroiditis that in some cases shows an extensive replacement of thyroid parenchyma by fibrous tissue. The authors report the rare association of IRF with HT in a 68-year-old woman. The so far reported cases of IRF associated with chronic thyroiditis are reviewed, and the possible aetiopathogenetic link between these two entities is discussed. To access the full abstract of the article, click here.