IODINE IN EARLY PREGNANCY – IS THERE ENOUGH?

Aims: To evaluate the iodine status of patients in early pregnancy and its dependence on level of thyroid-stimulat-ing hormone (TSH). Methods: Between June 2005 and December 2006, 168 patients with a confi rmed vital pregnancy (up to 10th week of pregnancy) were included in the study. The entry criteria were no prior thyroid disease, did not take any other medication, had not undergone radio-iodine therapy and did not take multivitamins containing iodine. The iodine status was measured as the amount of iodine in urine over 24 hours. The TSH level was determined from the blood using chemiluminescence. Results: The average ioduria value in patients was found to be 3.04 μmol/24 hr, with the norm 0.6–2.4 μmol/ 24 hr, median 2.9, SD 1.5. None of the patients had a value lower than 0.9 μmol/24 hr. The average TSH value was 1.98 mIU/l, median was 1.31, SD 0.98. The laboratory limits were set to 0.25–3 mIU/l for pregnant women in the fi rst trimester. Three pregnancies ended in miscarriage by week 12, 1 miscarriage occurred in week 22 and the other pregnancies concluded in delivery between weeks 38-41. Fourteen patients had TSH levels above 3 mIU/l with normal levels od free thyroxine (T4) : 10.3–25 pmol/l. Conclusions: The results of this study did not reveal any iodine defi cit in any of the patients. However 14 patients had elevated TSH levels signalling subclinical or incipiently clinical hypothyroidism. These pacients underwent lev-othyroxine therapy after endocrinologist’s consultations