The Situation of Iodine in Pregnant Women in Samut Sakhon Province

Abstract

     This retrospective study aimed to study the situation of iodine status among pregnant women in Samut Sakhon Province. The population used in the study was 4148 pregnant women attending the first antenatal care and not receiving iodine supplementation tablets in Samut Sakhon Province, fiscal year 2019-2021, from 3 hospitals, including Samut Sakhon Hospital, Krathumbaen Hospital, and Banphaeo Hospital. The sample size was calculated from 10–15% of the population, resulting in 749 participants attending this study. The research instrument was a summary of the results of iodine screening in pregnant women. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation.

          The research results showed that from 2019 to 2021, about 3 in 4 participants were in the age range of 20 to 35 years (71.30%). Most of the participants received their first antenatal care during the gestational age of < 12 weeks (70.62%), had no underlying disease (94.66%), and received food containing iodine (85.71%). Most of them had iodine content in urine in the iodine deficiency condition less than 150 ug/L (59.56%, 59.57%, and 56.90%, respectively).

          The Samut Sakhon Provincial Public Health Office should be driven by the control and prevention of iodine deficiency during pregnancy by accelerating the implementation of the main measures, namely the consumption of edible salt, adding iodine, and seasoning products that have adequate iodine, according to a Ministry of Public Health announcement, and increasing literacy among pregnant women and other people about the negative effects of iodine deficiency.