ABSTRACT
No nutrient deficiency is as bad as iodine deficiency which attributed to a broad spectrum of disorders like goiter, abortion, hypothyroidism, etc. screening for hypothyroidism must be done before or just after pregnancy. The present study was conducted to evaluate serum TSH and urinary iodine concentration in pregnant women in Gorgan several years after salt iodization in Iran was implemented. From December to March 2004, 97 pregnant women referred for prenatal care to the Deziani Hospital of Gorgan were selected. 2 cc of blood for serum TSH measurement and 2cc of urine for iodine concentration measurement were collected. Urine iodine concentration was measured by acid digestion and TSH concentration was measured by ELISA method. 97 women, 86 [89%] women had normal urinary iodine, 11 women had iodine deficiency, 9 women had mild iodine deficiency [82%] and two women [18%] had moderate iodine deficiency none of them had severe iodine deficiency. Serum TSH was normal in 90 women and only in 7 women it was more than 4 and none of them had TSH less than 0.3. There were not any significant statistical correlation between age, weight, height, parity, goiter grading, salary, gestational age and urinary iodine concentration. According to low prevalence of iodine deficiency in this study iodine programs were successful in Gorgan and the mean urinary iodine is high so evaluating of iodine consumption for preventing of iodine overload is necessary. Because of complications of iodine deficiency especially in the first trimester of pregnancy regular measurement of urinary iodine must be done in reproductive ages before pregnancy or just after pregnancy