Letters
Screening for central hypothyroidism is unjustified
BMJ 2001; 322 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.322.7289.798 (Published 31 March 2001) Cite this as: BMJ 2001;322:798
- Alun Price, chief medical laboratory scientific officer, department of clinical chemistry (alun.price@bigfoot.com),
- A P Weetman, dean of medical school
- University of Sheffield, Northern General Hospital, Sheffield S5 7AU
EDITOR—If we do enough tests on enough people we will always pick up abnormalities; we must also take account of the false positive rate of any testing strategy. These points are missing from Waise and Belchetz's article on unsuspected central hypothyroidism.1
Most patients in general practice for whom measurement of thyroid stimulating hormone concentration is requested have vague symptoms. This has a firm foundation: the …
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