Antibodies to Yersinia enterocolitica in thyroid disease

The prevalence of elevated antibody titers against Yersinia enterocolitica was studied in normal subjects, patients with a variety of nonthyroidal illnesses, and patients with thyroid disease. In contrast to the low prevalence of antibodies in controls (less than 8%), 48 of 67 patients (75%) with a variety of thyroid disorders had titers greater than 1:8. Antibodies were found in 24 of 36 patients with Graves' disease, five of six with autonomous adenoma, seven of seven with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, three of five with idiopathic primary hypothyroidism, four of 11 with nontoxic nodular goiter, and one of two with thyroid carcinoma. Antibodies to serotype 3 were the most prevalent, occurred in the highest titers, and were found particularly in patients with Graves' disease. These observations indicate that in spite of the infrequent occurrence of yersinia infection in the United States as compared with Scandinavia, patients with thyroid disorders have a higher prevalence of antibodies to Yersinia than normal subjects or patients with other disorders.