The Heart and Hyperthyroidism

The cardiac manifestations of hyperthyroidism have long been recognized as among the earliest and most consistent features of this disorder. The association of palpitations, tachycardia, and cardiomegaly with thyroid-gland enlargement and exophthalmos was initially described almost 200 years ago by Caleb Parry, an English physician who practiced in Bath. (Although exophthalmic goiter is generally referred to as Graves' disease in this country, Parry's description of the condition predated that of Robert Graves by 49 years.) Recent experimental studies in both animals and human beings have provided considerable insight into the nature of the interaction between thyroid hormone and the heart. . . .