Introduction: Thyroid disorders are common in pregnancy and have been linked to adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. Symptoms of thyroid disorders are sometimes mistaken for those of normal pregnancy, and so often go unnoticed. This study investigates the prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in pregnant women in a tertiary care hospital.
Subjects and Methods: This was a cross sectional study conducted at the largest tertiary care hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia enrolling 154 first trimester pregnant Saudi women attending the Obstetrics and Gynecology clinic at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, from October to April 2015. Measurements of serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) were taken as part of the routine antenatal blood tests.
Results: The prevalence of hypothyroidism was 40.25% (n=62) and hyperthyroidism 0.6% (n=1) using the cutoff TSH level based on the guidelines of the American Thyroid Association for the diagnosis and management of thyroid disease during pregnancy.
Conclusion: Prevalence of hypothyroidism was found to be high in our study and hence, antenatal thyroid screening should be judiciously offered. Routine testing with serum TSH is a sufficient and cost effective screening tool.
