Association between antibiotic use and Graves’ disease: a cohort study
Authors' conclusion
Prolonged antibiotic exposure and exposure to a greater number of antibiotic classes were associated with a modest relative increase in subsequent GD risk, although absolute differences were small.
Study context
- Population
- Adults aged ≥40 years who underwent health screening in 2005–2006, Korean National Health Insurance Service database
- Participants
- 311,911 adults
- Exposure
- Cumulative antibiotic exposure vs non-users
- Outcome
- Incident GD
Methodological detailsKorean National Health Insurance Service database, Cox proportional hazards regression, adjusted for covariates
- Korean National Health Insurance Service database
- Cox proportional hazards regression, adjusted for covariates
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
GD risk by cumulative antibiotic exposure
Non-users
4.6 per 10 000 person-years
1-14 days
6.3 per 10 000 person-years
15-60 days
8.1 per 10 000 person-years
≥61 days
8.2 per 10 000 person-years
Each group vs non-usersAdjusted hazard ratio (95% CI)
1-14 days
1.23(1.03–1.47)
15-60 days
1.43(1.20–1.70)
≥61 days
1.43(1.18–1.73)
- Longer cumulative antibiotic exposure associated with higher graves' disease (GD) risk
- P for trend < 0.0001
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | aHR (95% CI) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GD risk by number of distinct antibiotic classes (0, 1, 2, 3, ≥4)≥4 classesvs 0 classes | 1.50 (1.25–1.80) | P for trend < 0.0001 | |
| 0.512Adjusted hazard ratio (log scale) |
Original publication
Association between antibiotic use and Graves’ disease: a cohort study. Eur J Endocrinol. Published 31 August 2026. doi:10.
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