Endocrine & metabolic · UKMLA & AKT
Graves' disease
A free high-yield preview for the UKMLA Applied Knowledge Test, covering how to recognise this condition. The full SA Note notes add investigations, management and complications, with practice questions on this topic.
Key high-yield points
- Most common cause of hyperthyroidism - accounts for 75-80% of cases
- Affects women 6-10x more than men; peak onset 30-40 years
- Mechanism: IgG autoantibodies (TRAb/TSI) act as persistent TSH receptor agonists → unchecked T3/T4 synthesis → suppressed TSH
- TSH receptors also expressed on orbital and dermal fibroblasts → TRAb binding causes GAG deposition → extrathyroidal features unique to Graves'
Around 30% of patients with Graves' disease have eye disease - absence of eye signs does NOT exclude the diagnosis.
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