Iodine deficiency is back in Tasmania
24 June 2002
Mild iodine deficiency is recurring in Tasmania, 50 years after a public health campaign of iodine prophylaxis (preventive treatment with iodine) eliminated endemic iodine deficiency in the state.
Researchers assessed 225 children aged 4 to 17 years from around Tasmania during 2000; their report in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (2002; 878: 2809-15) showed a median urinary iodine excretion of 84 ug/L.
A median urinary iodine concentration above 100 ug/L is evidence against endemic iodine deficiency, according to World Health Organization criteria.
Last Reviewed: 24 June 2002
- 1. Medical Observer Weekly 21/6/02
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