Developmental Screening of Children with Congenital Hypothyroidism Using Ages and Stages Questionnaires Test

OBJECTIVES: Congenital hypothyroidism (CH) is one of the most common causes of mental retardation in children. We investigated the developmental status of children with CH screened by Ages & Stages Questionnaires (ASQ) measurement scores. MATERIALS & METHODS: In this retrospective study, neurodevelopmental status of 78 children diagnosed with CH followed up at the Outpatient Pediatric Endocrinology Clinic of Besat Hospital, Hamadan, Iran from May 2006 to Mar 2013, was evaluated by ASQ method. Data on age, sex, birth weight, birth length, head circumference, residency location, parental education level, primary venous TSH and T4 levels, age at diagnosis, treatment start age and initial levothyroxine dosage were extracted from medical records. Data were analyzed using statistical software SPSS. P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Of the 78 patients, 34 (43.6%) were female, 32 (41%) had developmental disorder, and 56 (71.8%) were living in urban areas. Types of developmental impairments included: global motor delay in 13 (40.6%) patients, problem-solving in 11 (34.3%), impaired communication skills in 5 (15.6%), impaired fine motor skills in 2 (6.2%), and impairment of personal social skills in 1 (3.1%). The average ages for diagnosis and treatment were 25.65 days in patients with developmental impairment and 17.99 days in those without developmental delay. ASQ results showed significant statistical correlation with initial dose of levothyroxine (P=0.017), age of hypothyroidism diagnosis (P=0.002) and age of treatment initiation (P=0.018). CONCLUSION: Early diagnosis and treatment along with initial levothyroxine dose were most important factors of ASQ scores of children with CH. Higher dose of the levothyroxine is required at onset.