Clinical analysis of hyperthyroid heart disease in 31 elderly patients.

A clinical analysis of hyperthyroidism heart diseases was conducted in 31 elderly patients, of whom 15 (48.4%) had been misdiagnosed before accurate diagnoses were reached 4 months to 3 years later. Among the 15 misdiagnosed cases, 9 were misdiagnosed as coronary heart disease, 3 as pulmonary heart disease, 2 as hypertension heart disease and 1 as dilated cardiomyopathy. This result suggests that physicians need to be more aware of elderly hyperthyroidism, and thorough history inquiry, systemic examination and timely thyroid function test can reduce the misdiagnosis of hyperthyroid heart disease in elderly patients.