Congenital Hypothyroidism is a hormonal disorder that occurs when the thyroid hormone is insufficient or not secreted at all, resulting in retardation in somatic and psychomotor development. The importance of this disease is that it is common in society and is the most common cause of preventable mental retardation. Thyroid hormone is a very important hormone for brain development and function and has important functions such as the formation of nerve cells and conduction in nerves. The prevalence of Congenital Hypothyroidism is between 1/3000 - 1/4000. In a study conducted in our country, this rate was found to be 1/2736. In general, we see that the most important cause of this disease is iodine deficiency. This disease is much more common, especially in regions with low iodine levels in their water. This condition can be corrected with adequate iodine replacement. In regions where there is no iodine deficiency, the most important causes of this disease include the congenital absence of the thyroid gland or the gland not being where it should be. In addition, disorders at the level of hormonal formation in the thyroid gland are the cause of congenital hypothyroidism. Normally, after the iodine taken orally is retained by the thyroid gland, it passes through a number of enzymatic reactions and turns into two thyroid hormones called T3 and T4. The most important hormone effective in this transformation is the TSH hormone secreted from the sac called pituitary in the brain. T3, T4 and TSH work in balance. If T3 and T4 cannot be produced in sufficient amounts due to iodine deficiency or any other reason, this situation is tried to be corrected by increasing TSH release.
Thyroid Hormone; Although it is not primarily responsible for growth during pregnancy, it is primarily responsible for growth after birth. It is effective in the development of the brain and skeletal system. It plays a role in regulating body temperature and liquid-ion transport. It is also effective in amino acid and lipid metabolism.
The conditions in which hypothyroidism should be considered in a newborn are as follows:
*If the birth weight is over 4000gr
*The gestation period is less than 42 weeks if it lasts too long
*If a baby born on time has a lung problem
*Low body temperature
*Large anterior and posterior fontanel
*Large tongue, feeding difficulty
*Constipation � �k
*Prolonged jaundice
*Umbilical hernia
*Large thyroid gland
However, these findings are often not observed in the first months. As the child grows, these findings become evident, but then it is too late. Therefore, especially those with prolonged jaundice in the neonatal period and those who complain of constipation should be examined immediately for hypothyroidism.
In recent years, a hypothyroidism screening program has been initiated in our country, and now, heel blood is taken from every newborn baby, whether they have complaints or not, and treatment is started immediately if necessary. By correcting hormone levels with treatment, children can be prevented from suffering from mental retardation. Of course, the most important problem, especially for our country, is the iodization of water and ensuring that it has normal iodine levels. In this way, iodine deficiency, which is one of the most important causes of congenital hypothyroidism, will not occur and the incidence of this disease will decrease significantly.
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