Comparison of the therapeutic effects of prednisolone and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in patients with subacute thyroiditis

Subacute thyroiditis is a transient inflammatory thyroid disease of unknown etiology. The primary goal for treatment is to mitigate inflammation. The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the therapeutic effects of prednisolone and nonsteroidal anti-inflammation drugs in patients with subacute thyroiditis. In this study, 53 consecutive Japanese patients who had been diagnosed with were referred to our hospital for further management. After excluding 11 patients (9 did not need treatment, 2 did not meet the criteria for diagnosis of subacute thyroiditis), the remaining 42 patients were treated either with prednisolone (n = 25) or loxoprofen (n = 17). We compared the time periods required for resolution of clinical symptoms and signs and normalization of thyroid function between the two groups. The mean dose of prednisolone was 15.0 (range, 14–16) mg/day and that of loxoprofen was 180 mg/day. The time period to normalization of thyroid function was comparable between the prednisolone and loxoprofen groups (25, 18–36, vs 32, 21–39 days, p = 0.388). However, the time period for resolution of symptoms was shorter under prednisolone than loxoprofen (7, 7–12 days, vs 21, 14–32 days, p < 0.001). Prednisolone treatment of patients with subacute thyroiditis was superior to nonsteroidal anti-inflammation drugs with regard to resolution of symptoms.