2022 Volume 43 Issue 4 Pages 232-236
An 85-year-old woman was transferred to our emergency room due to disturbance of consciousness. When her relatives found her at home, she was lying stark-naked. On arrival at our hospital, the patient's level of consciousness was GCS 10, and her deep body temperature (BT) was 28.0 ℃. She was also markedly dehydrated state. She was immediately rewarmed and resuscitated with fluid. Even after she recovered from hypothermia and dehydration, she was still in the drowsy state. Laboratory findings on the admission showed hypothyroidism with high TSH and low fT3 and fT4 blood levels. She met the diagnostic criteria for myxedema coma, and then levothyroxine sodium, a thyroid hormone, was started. It improved her consciousness to clear. Although myxedema coma is an uncommon disease, its early identification and intervention are required for better prognosis.
