THE EFFECT OF SUBCLINICAL HYPOTHYROIDISM ON THE RELATIVE LENGTH OF TELOMERES IN PATIENTS WITH HIGH CARDIOVASCULAR RISK: FOCUS ON ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION IN COMBINATION WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES
The presence of subclinical hypothyroidism due to the combined course of arterial hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus compared with individuals with this comorbid pathology and normal thyroid function leads to unreliable changes in the relative length (T / S) of telomeres that are multidirectional in nature: shortening T / S leukocyte telomere and lengthening T / S telomere of buccal epithelial cells. The presence of a reliable shortening of T / S leukocyte telomeres with a TSH level of more than 7 μU / ml allows us to regard this level as a threshold, affecting cardiovascular risk, including in patients with comorbid pathology. The T / S evaluation of telomeres of buccal epithelial cells can be used as an additional parameter that enhances the diagnostic and prognostic strength of the relative length of blood leukocyte telomeres.