Goiter monitoring of schoolchildren in Kermanshah province; 17 years after salt iodization program

Background: Iodine deficiency elimination program has begun since two decades ago in Iran. This study was performed to evaluate the adequacy of iodine supplementation after 17 years of national salt iodization in the Kermanshah province.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study 1200 schoolchildren aged 8 to10 year-old from Kermanshah province were randomly selected and evaluated in 2007. Goiter prevalence, urinary iodine excretion and iodine content of household salts were assessed. The results obtained were compared with those before iodization in 1996 and 2001.

Results: Total prevalence of goiter was 10.8% in the province. The prevalence of grade 2 goiter was 1 and 0.7 percent in urban and rural areas, respectively. The median urinary iodine among 120 schoolchildren was 129.7 µg/L, with 17.5 % having urinary iodine excretion less than 50µg/L. 74.6% of households were using purified iodized salt, 71% of households had appropriate salt storage.

Conclusions: The goiter prevalence has decreased significantly in Kermanshah, 17 years after national salt iodization. The median urinary iodine of schoolchildren was more than 100 µg /L in comparison with the results of studies conducted in 1996 and 2001 which indicates a well established IDD program in Iran.