Iodine deficiency disorders in India.

ABSTRACT

Iodine deficiency disorders were widely prevalent in Indian subcontinent before the successful salt iodisation. There has been a remarkable decline in goitre prevalence and improvement of functional thyroid status and normalisation of iodine nutrition status in the community. Goitre endemicity of varying degree persists among school children even a decade after successful salt iodisation in India. Some other factors like high thiocyanate exposure or auto-immune thyroid disease could be responsible for such a phenomenon.