Although a large volume of information on the radioiodine uptake by the thyroid of the adult is available, there is relatively little such information concerning the infant and child. For the most part, published data for the child or infant relate to the normal or hypothyroid person and pertain to the period between 24 and 96 hours following the administration of the radioiodine test dose.
The present study concerns the thyroid uptake of radioiodine as a function of the status of the thyroid gland, the age of the patient, and the time after the administration of the test dose. It provides data on the effect of the thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) on thyroidal accumulation of radioiodine in the euthyroid, the primary hypothyroid, and the pituitary hypothyroid child.
In a recent paper by Martmer, Corrigan, Charbeneau, and Sosin,1 the 24-hour radioiodine uptake in 65 premature infants was reported as being within