Rabia Naureen, Muhammad Hanif Memon, Ghulam Murtaza, Shahina Hanif.
Frequency of Congenital Hypothyroidism (CH) in Neonates of a Tertiary Care Hospital of Karachi, Pakistan.
Ann Abbasi Shaheed Hosp Karachi Med Dent Coll Jan ;21(2):75-81.

Objective: To determine the frequency of congenital hypothyroidism among healthy newborns presenting to a public health facility in Karachi, Pakistan. Methods: This cross sectional study was carried out for six months duration at the Well Baby Clinic, Paediatric unit III, Civil hospital Karachi. Neonates of both sex delivered after 37 weeks of gestation, at Civil Hospital Karachi and visited the well baby clinic, after 48 hours of birth to <4 weeks of age for follow up were included in the study. A 3 cc venous blood sample taken for serum Thyroid Stimulating Harmone (TSH) level. Data analysis was done using SPSS statistics version 16. Results: A total of 215 healthy newborns were included, 112 were male and 103 female patients. Congenital hypothyroidism was considered according to the TSH value. The results showed that 35 patients had TSH >40 (μU/ml). Conclusion: This study shows that in the screening for the congenital hypothyroidism, 16.3% had a TSH level of >40 (μU/ml). This suggests that screening of hypothyroidism should be mandatory in all newborns especially in our region for early diagnosis and treatment of congenital hypothyroidism. Keywords: Congenital hypothyroidism, Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH), newborn, Well Baby Clinic IRB: Approved by REU NO: 10433 Ref No: CPSP/REU/PED-2012-183-2309 Dated: 20th November, 2014.

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