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Topics in Pediatrics pp 25–33Cite as

In Utero Protection of the Brain of the Hypothyroid Infant

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Abstract

The prime question when Dussault1 initiated neonatal hypothyroidism screening 14 years ago was how much if any of the brain damage leading to intellectual retardation in infantile hypothyroidism was postnatal. The fact that the IQs and school achievements of the patients of the New England Congenital Hypothyroidism Collaborative are indistinguishable from those of their siblings and peers proves that nearly all of this brain damage in sporadic infantile hypothyroidism is postnatal.2–4 Figure 4.1 shows the latest Stanford-Binet IQs for 121 patients at 3 to 5 years. The means for patients and controls were both 105 ± 15 (SD). The stippled background represents a normal Gaussian distribution derived from these means and standard deviations. It is obvious that the distribution of the patients’ IQs is normal. Figure 4.2 is similarly constructed and shows the WISC-RIQ at 6 years for 57 patients. The mean IQ of the patients was 109 ± 13, and that of the controls was 110 ± 13.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. New England Congenital Hypothyroidism Collaborative and the Department of Maternal and Child Health, Dartmouth University Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA

    Robert Z. Klein

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  1. Robert Z. Klein
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of South Florida College of Medicine, 33612, Tampa, Florida, USA

    Herbert H. Pomerance MD (Professor of Pediatrics, Professor Emeritus) & Barry B. Bercu MD (Professor of Pediatrics) (Professor of Pediatrics, Professor Emeritus) &  (Professor of Pediatrics)

  2. Department of Pediatrics, West Virgina University College Of Medicine, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA

    Herbert H. Pomerance MD (Professor of Pediatrics, Professor Emeritus) (Professor of Pediatrics, Professor Emeritus)

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© 1990 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

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Klein, R.Z. (1990). In Utero Protection of the Brain of the Hypothyroid Infant. In: Pomerance, H.H., Bercu, B.B. (eds) Topics in Pediatrics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3230-8_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3230-8_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-7925-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-3230-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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