CureusJun 3, 2025

Thyroid inflammation linked to tirzepatide, a drug acting on two blood sugar hormones: a case report

GLP-1 Therapies Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Jan 20, 2026

Abstract

A 32-year-old woman developed painless biphasic thyroiditis after two months of tirzepatide therapy.

The patient experienced initial thyrotoxicosis followed by transient hypothyroidism.
Thyroid autoantibodies were negative, suggesting an absence of autoimmune thyroid disease.
Ultrasound findings indicated heterogeneous echotexture with increased vascularity, consistent with thyroiditis.
Other potential causes of thyroiditis, such as infectious, autoimmune, postpartum, and infiltrative conditions, were ruled out.
Thyroid function returned to normal two months after stopping tirzepatide without further treatment.

Simplified

Drug-induced thyroiditis is an uncommon but clinically important condition. As dual glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor agonists like tirzepatide are increasingly used for weight management and blood sugar control, there is growing interest in understanding their potential thyroid-related effects. We report a 32-year-old woman with no personal or family history of thyroid disease who developed painless biphasic thyroiditis, initial thyrotoxicosis followed by transient hypothyroidism, after two months of tirzepatide therapy. Thyroid autoantibodies were negative, and ultrasound showed heterogeneous echotexture with increased vascularity, consistent with thyroiditis. Infectious, autoimmune, postpartum, and infiltrative causes were excluded based on clinical history, laboratory findings, and imaging. Thyroid function normalized two months after discontinuing tirzepatide without the need for treatment. This case highlights a possible association between tirzepatide and drug-induced painless thyroiditis. It adds to the limited literature and emphasizes the need for clinician awareness of this possible adverse effect.

Full Text

We can’t show the full text here under this license.

View Full Text ↗

Funding

Competing interests

Human subjects: Consent for treatment and open access publication was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

PubMed

Thyroid inflammation linked to tirzepatide, a drug acting on two blood sugar hormones: a case report

Abstract

Full Text

Funding

Competing interests

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

What Lands in Your Inbox Each Week:

Recent issues from the glp-1 therapies brief

Abstract

Full Text

Funding

Competing interests

Related papers

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

What Lands in Your Inbox Each Week:

Recent issues from the glp-1 therapies brief