Endocrine Abstracts

Aim of the study was to evaluate influence of potassium iodide on hormonal thyroid function.

In medicine there are widely used medias with large, overphysiologic doses of iodine for both treatment and diagnosis. We investigated influence of high repeated iodine doses on hormonal thyroid balance in healthy children with no previous history of any thyroid diseases.

Thirty eight children at age from 6 to12 years old with no personal and familiar history of thyroid diseases, were treated with potassium iodide solution for a week as an oral pharynx disinfection. Indications were chronic pharynx infections. Evaluated patients had no contact with iodine during last twelve months. Thyroid hormone levels, antythyroid peroxidase antibodies and thyroid gland in ultrasound examination with 10 MHz sound were in normal range before larynx treatment. In all patients we measured levels of TSH and FT₄ before disinfection in the same day and after 4 and 12 weeks. Written informed consent was collected and study was approved by the Ethics committee. The collected results were submitted to a statistical study. Repeated measures ANOVA and posthoc analysis with LSD test were performed. P<0.05 was considered to indicate a statistically significant difference. Statistical computations were executed with Statistica, commercially available Software (StatSoft USA).

The mean TSH and FT₄ levels of analyzed group stayed in laboratory normal range but changes were statistically significant. In ten out of thirty eight children we observed hypothyroidism after 1 month and they needed thyroxin treatment. Results of our study demonstrate that use of iodine at low risk thyroid disease children is not safe and makes serious complications. Potassium iodide in excess amounts should not be used among children. When applied, careful endocrinological and thyroid hormones control should be performed.