The Turkish Journal of Pediatrics 2006; 48: 119-123 Original Prevalence of goiter and urinary iodine status of 7-11-year-old children in Malatya province, Turkey

Goiter prevalence and urinary iodine excretion levels were assessed in 568 schoolchildren (317 boys and 251 girls), aged 7-11 years, living in the Malatya province, a well-known endemic goiter area in Turkey. Five hundred sixty-eight children aged 7-11 years consented to thyroid gland palpation and provided a urine sample on the day of examination in April 2004. Median urinary iodine concentration for the total group was 66 µg/L. There was an association between presence of goiter or not and urinary iodine levels (67 µg/L versus 62 µg/L, p=0.000). The median urinary iodine concentration was lower in rural areas than in urban areas (54.6 µg/L versus 59.7 µg/L, respectively) and schoolchildren living in rural areas had significantly lower urinary iodine levels (p=0.000). In conclusion, the present study reports mild iodine deficiency in the Malatya province, despite a mandatory iodization program in Turkey which has been in force since 1998. Key words: urinary iodine status, schoolchildren, Malatya, Turkey, endemic goiter. Iodide is present in soil and seawater and i