Pilot study for congenital hypothyroidism, preliminary report

Preliminary results of a pilot study on congenital hypothyroidism performed on 8,025 newborns in Italy over a 10-month period are reported. The determination of both T4 and TSH on dried blood, spotted on filter paper, as screening procedure at day 3-5 of life revealed three cases of primary hypothyroidism and one case of hypo-thyroxin-binding-globulinemia (hypo-TBG-emia). The diagnosis of primary hypothyroidism was established on the basis of low T4 and high TSH levels in two of the three cases; in the third, with elevated TSH and normal T4 levels at screening, thyroid scintiscan showed an ectopic gland located at the base of the tongue. In the case of hypo-TBG-emia, low T4 and TBG levels were associated with normal TSH values. Some cases of transient hypothyroidism were observed in premature infants.