Congenital Hypothyroidism – What is it, Causes and Treatments!

Congenital Hypothyroidism – What it is, Causes and Treatments that we should not ignore. In addition, Congenital hypothyroidism is an inherited disease that prevents the  newborn’s thyroid gland from generating  T4 thyroid hormones . In young children this hormone  is essential and the absence of it decreases metabolism , preventing the individual’s physical and mental growth and development. Congenital hypothyroidism is one of the most frequent and preventable causes of mental retardation.

This condition is not curable, but it is treatable and when detected early, the patient can experience the effects of congenital hypothyroidism. Many medical centers routinely screen for this condition at birth so they can identify and resolve it if present. So, check out  Congenital Hypothyroidism – What it is, Causes and Treatments.

Causes of Congenital Hypothyroidism: Where there is iodine deficiency  in the diet, congenital hypothyroidism can be caused by this factor. In regions where this deficiency is not endemic, congenital hypothyroidism is usually caused by an absent or ectopic thyroid gland  (located, for example, at the base of the tongue), which is genetically determined. More rarely, it is an inherited pathology that leads to a failure in the biosynthesis of thyroid hormones  .

Symptoms of Congenital Hypothyroidism: Children not treated early have severely compromised mental growth and development, with muscle hypotonia, breathing difficulties, cyanosis, prolonged jaundice, constipation, bradycardia, anemia , excessive sleepiness, hoarse crying, umbilical hernia  , enlarged fontanelles , myxedema, heart murmur, difficulty in feeding with poor weight and height growth, delay in teething, delay in bone maturation, dry and inelastic skin, delay in neuromotor development and mental retardation.

It is important to remember that about 20% of cases are asymptomatic at birth and that symptoms, when present, may be insignificant. This increases the importance of performing the Foot Test in all newborns. Ideally, the collection should be carried out in the maternity ward, after 48 hours of life.

Treatment For Congenital Hypothyroidism: The treatment of congenital hypothyroidism requires regular hormone testing to confirm that the developing baby is getting enough hormone tests. As the child grows, the dose will need to be increased. People continue hormone supplementation for life, ensuring that their bodies can get enough of the hormones  to function. Constant dose of thyroid hormone  eliminate developmental delays that would otherwise occur with congenital hypothyroidism.

Treatment for congenital hypothyroidism should begin soon after the Foot Test has detected the problem, in the first week of birth. Treatment for congenital hypothyroidism  consists of replacement of deficient thyroid hormones    and should be maintained for life. At the beginning of treatment, a high dose of T4 is used with the aim of quickly reaching T4 levels considered ideal to minimize brain damage. If the tests aimed at clarifying the etiology of the problem have to delay the start of hormone replacement, it is advisable that they are not performed at this time, leaving them for later, when hormones  can be temporarily suspended.