Neonatal hypothyroidism is curable with early treatment

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted with Specialist Doctor I Nguyen Thi My Linh - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital.
Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough hormones to meet the body's needs. The disease can be completely cured if detected and treated in time.

1. Neonatal hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism, also known as hypothyroidism in infants, is a medical condition that occurs when the thyroid gland does not produce enough hormones to meet the needs of the baby's body. The disease occurs in 1 in 3000 to 1 in 4000 newborns.

2. What are the consequences on the baby if not detected early and treated promptly?

If a newborn baby has congenital hypothyroidism and is not detected and treated promptly by parents and doctors, in the first 2-3 weeks after birth, the disease can cause the following consequences: Neonatal period : babies often have jaundice and this lasts longer than usual, the skin color is often lead gray and pale. The baby will sleep a lot, be inflexible to outside noises, cry less, or quit or suckle less, not awake when the mother is nursing, slow to gain weight, often cold hands and feet, tongue often sticks out. .. The period after infancy and early childhood: children are physically retarded (usually slow to gain weight and grow taller) and mentally inflexible... compared to normal children. If congenital hypothyroidism is detected too late, the treatment will be difficult and ineffective due to the sequelae of mental development, or the long-term irreversible lack of T4 hormone.

3. Can infantile hypothyroidism be cured?

Children with congenital hypothyroidism will be treated to return to normal if they are detected early and treated in a timely manner within the first 2 weeks after birth.
48 hours after birth, the baby will have a blood sample from the heel or a vein soaked in blotting paper to test for TSH and T4. If the TSK is high and the T4 is low, the child will be treated and monitored by specialists.
Therefore, the sooner the child is detected with this pathology, the higher the child's ability to recover and develop psycho-physiologically as a normal person.

4. How to treat congenital hypothyroidism

Because the baby's body lacks the necessary T4 hormone. So, endocrinologists will be able to prescribe a drug called L-thyroxine (also known as synthetic T4). This medicine is used at the appropriate dose depending on the instructions of the endocrinologist and on the results of the TSH and T4 tests after the child takes the medicine.

Congenital hypothyroidism in infants needs to be diagnosed and treated early, otherwise this pathology will seriously affect the child's mental, physical and learning development.
Department of Endocrinology - Diabetes under the Department of General Internal Medicine - Vinmec Times City International Hospital has the function of examining, diagnosing and treating Endocrine diseases: pituitary - thyroid - adrenal gland diseases and Diabetes, including the treatment of neonatal hypothyroidism.
The specialist works closely with the IVF Center - Obstetrics Department in the management of patients with thyroid disease during pregnancy, gestational diabetes. In addition, the specialist applies new techniques in disease treatment such as: treatment of benign thyroid nodules with high-frequency ablation (avoiding surgery for thyroid nodules).

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.