Neonatal Screening for Congenital Hypothyroidism in an University Hospital in Tehran, Iran

The national program of neonatal screening was performed in 2005 in Iran. According to the studies, the outbreak of congenital hypothyroidism (CH) was one in every 670 live births in 2011. The prevalence of the disease in the world is 1 in 3000. The mean prevalence of this disease in Iran is estimated to be 1 in 1,000, which indicates a high prevalence of the disease in Iran. This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of congenital hypothyroidism among neonates in the Najmiyeh hospital in Tehran, Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted from 2011 to 2014. Most heel blood samples were taken between three and seven days of birth. Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) was tested using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Neonates with abnormal screening results (TSH > 10 mIU/L, Free T4 < 1.6 mg/dL) were re-examined. Data were analyzed using the SPSS software. A total of 11427 infants were screened. Of 399 re-called subjects (re-call rate = 3%), 57 cases were detected with CH, a CH prevalence of 1:200 (the female:male ratio of 1:1.5). The prevalence of CH in our center is high. These results emphasize the importance of the congenital screening program.