Association between iron status and thyroid function in Nepalese children

Deficiencies of iodine and iron may have adverse effect on thyroid function. This study was undertaken to investigate the association between iron status and thyroid function in Nepalese children living in hilly regions. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 227 school children aged 6-12 years living in hilly regions of eastern Nepal. Urine and blood samples were analyzed for urinary iodine concentration, free thyroxine, free triiodothyronine, thyroid stimulating hormone, hemoglobin, serum iron and total iron binding capacity, and percentage transferrin saturation was calculated. The cohort comprised euthyroid (80.6 %, n = 183), overt hypothyroid (1.3 %, n = 3), subclinical hypothyroid (16.3 %, n = 37) and subclinical hyperthyroid (1.8 %, n = 4) children respectively. About 35.2 % (n = 80) children were anemic, 43.6 % (n = 99) were iron deficient and 19.8 % (n = 45) had urinary iodine excretion