Iodine deficiency disorder spectrum

Iodine deficiency of the fetus is the result of iodine deficiency in the mother (Manz et al. 1993). The spectrum of iodine deficiency disorders comprises ... 

The term iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) has been generally adopted to denote the spectrum of diverse effects resulting from iodine deficiency in a population, which are all preventable by correction of iodine deficiency (Hetzel,... 

The international public health community, including the international agencies, needed to be made aware of the public health implications of the relationship between iodine deficiency and brain damage. The spectrum of the effects of iodine deficiency in a population that can be prevented by correction of iodine deficiency has been designated as iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) (see further entry in Handbook on Hetzel, B.S., Iodine Deficiency and the Brain- an Overview is chapter 62 in the Handbook). 

All this activity has stemmed from a new perception of the effects of iodine deficiency. The concept of the Iodine Deficiency Disorders refers to a broad spectrum of conditions which affect the fetus, the neonate, the child and the adult. Particularly important are the fetal effects, including miscarriage, stillbirth, as well as neurological cretinism which is of special interest to this symposium, as it is the reference point for studies on iodine and the brain. This condition, well known in the ancient and mediaeval worlds, was described in Diderot s Encyclopedie in 1754 when a cretin was defined as an "imbecile with a goitre down to the waist". 

Iodine deficiency has a number of other effects, including development of goitre, clinical or sub-clinical hypothyroidism, decreased fertility rates, increased stillbirth and spontaneous abortion rates, and increased perinatal and infant mortality. This spectrum of clinical effects, collectively called iodine deficiency disorders, underlines the importance of iodine in human health. 

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