Research: Patient Satisfaction
ATA Survey of Patients with Hypothyroidism Shows Dissatisfaction With Treatment Options
2018. The American Thyroid Association (ATA) surveyed 12 146 individuals with hypothyroidism and asked responders to answer questions about demographic data, their satisfaction with treatments and their physicians, their perceptions of the physicians’ knowledge about hypothyroidism treatments, the need for new treatments, and the impact of hypothyroidism on their lives, among others.
The survey demonstrated a distinct subset of patients who are dissatisfied with their therapies and their physicians. On a scale from 1 to 10, overall degree of satisfaction with therapy was rated 5. How much hypothyroidism has affected their lives received a score of 10.
Second, patients taking natural preparations, rather than synthetic hormone replacement therapy or combination therapy, were more satisfied with their treatment.
a great majority of those responding expressed “a strong desire for the development of additional hypothyroidism treatment options.” This question received an overall score of 10.
Enhancing the Patient Voice: Quality of Life, Satisfaction, and Preference During Treatment of Hypothyroidism
2022. The traditional mainstay for monitoring hypothyroidism therapy is biochemical measures of thyroid function, including thyroid stimulating hormone, free thyroxine, and total triiodothyronine measurements. Most clinicians are familiar with treated hypothyroid patients who have within-range thyroid function test results, but are dissatisfied with their therapy.
A range of validated thyroid-related PROs have been used to assess QOL7,8 and treatment satisfaction in patients with hypothyroidism.
This cross-sectional survey, aptly named E-MPATHY, resulted in 3915 responses from 68 countries and the results were subject to multilevel regression modeling. The type of treatment for hypothyroidism (levothyroxine alone vs. combination therapies) was not associated with patient satisfaction. This is in contradistinction to a previous survey-based study in the United States, which showed greater satisfaction with combination therapies, and in particular desiccated thyroid extract, but in keeping with the results of a survey conducted in the United Kingdom.
The current article by Perros et al serves as a timely and persuasive reminder of the importance of not losing sight of the patient perspective.
Patient satisfaction and quality of life in hypothyroidism: An online survey by the british thyroid foundation
2021. We conducted an online survey of individuals with self-reported hypothyroidism. Nine hundred sixty-nine responses were analysed. Dissatisfaction with treatment was common (77.6%), and overall QOL (quality of life) scores were low. Patient satisfaction did not correlate with type of thyroid hormone treatment, but treatment with combination levothyroxine (L-T4) and liothyronine (L-T3) or with desiccated thyroid extract (DTE) was associated with significantly better reported QOL than L-T4 or L-T3 monotherapies.
Conclusions: Multiple parameters including prior healthcare experiences and expectations influence satisfaction with hypothyroidism treatment and QOL. Focusing on enhancing the patient experience and clarifying expectations at diagnosis may improve satisfaction and QOL.
Patient-Reported Satisfaction with Thyroid Hormone Replacement Therapy for Subclinical Hypothyroidism in Older Adults: A Pooled Analysis of Individual Participant Data from Two Randomized Controlled Trials
2024. The benefit of levothyroxine treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) is subject to debate. This study compared treatment satisfaction between older adults with SCH using levothyroxine or placebo. We analyzed pooled individual participant data from two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials investigating the effects of levothyroxine treatment in older adults with SCH. Intervention dose titration until thyrotropin levels normalized, with a mock dose adjustment of placebo. Treatment satisfaction was determined during the final study visit using the Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication (TSQM), encompassing perceived effectiveness, side effects, convenience, and global satisfaction, along with the participants’ desire to continue study medication after the trial.
We included 536 participants. No major differences were found in the numbers of participants who wished to continue medication after the trial (levothyroxine 35% vs. placebo 27%), did not wish to continue (levothyroxine 27% vs. placebo 30%), or did not know (levothyroxine 37% vs. placebo 42%) (p = 0.14).