The Prevalence of Goiter and Urinary Iodine Excretion in School-Aged Children of Kermanshah

The province of Kermanshah was one of the regions with endemic goiter in Iran, where following initiation of the program of control of iodine deficiency in 1989, production, distribution and consumption of iodized salt were begun. This survey was conducted within the framework of national monitoring survey in 2001 to ascertain the urinary iodine levels and the prevalence of goiter and in order to evaluate the iodine status of school aged children in Kermanshah. 1200 schoolchildren, aged 7-10 years, were selected randomly from all regions of Kermanshah, and the grade of goiter, in 600 boys and 600 girls, was determined according to WHO classification. Urinary iodine content was estimated using the digestion method in one tenth of the schoolchildren. Total goiter rate was 122.9, 22.8% in girls and 123.0% in boys. Median urinary iodine was 18.0 µg/dl. Urinary iodine was above 10 µg/dl in 90.2% and less than 5 µg/dl in 2.2% no one had urinary iodine below 2 µg/dl. UIC levels and goiter prevalence were not statistically different between boys and girls and also between urban and rural areas. It is concluded that the rate of goiter in Kermanshah has decreased significantly since 1996 and urinary iodine levels in schoolchildren are indicative of adequate iodine intake. Kermanshah province therefore, can be considered an “iodine deficiency free” zone.