Overt Primary Hypothyroidism in an Industrial Area in São Paulo, Brazil: The Impact of Public Disclosure

Maria Angela Zaccarelli-Marino, Carmen Diva Saldiva André and Julio M. Singer
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Maria Angela Zaccarelli-Marino: Internal Medicine Department, Endocrinology Service, ABC Medical School Foundation, Santo André 09060-650, Brazil
Carmen Diva Saldiva André: Department of Statistics, Institute of Mathematics and Statistics, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
Julio M. Singer: Department of Statistics, Institute of Mathematics and Statistics, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil

IJERPH, 2016, vol. 13, issue 11, 1-11

Abstract: Background : Primary hypothyroidism (PH) is the most common thyroid pathology. Purpose : to evaluate the impact of public disclosure of an unexpected number of PH cases on the frequency of patients seeking medical evaluation for endocrinological diseases. Methods : data on 6306 subjects (3356 living in the surroundings of a petrochemical complex and 2950 in a control region) were collected over a 15-year time span. Thyroid function was determined by serum levels of triiodothyronine, thyroxine, free thyroxine and thyrotrophin. Antithyroglobulin and antithyroperoxidase antibodies and sonographic scans of the thyroid were performed in all patients. The data were analyzed via log-linear models to compute odds and odds ratios. Results : An increasing trend in the odds of PH was detected along the observation period with greater slope in the study region than in the control region. The odds of PH in the post-disclosure period (2002 to 2004) are greater than the corresponding ones in the pre-disclosure period (1989 to 2001). Conclusions : This study shows that living in the surroundings of a petrochemical complex may be an important risk factor for PH for both adults and children. Furthermore, public disclosure of such risk factor contributes to the awareness of the problem and to the possibility of an early diagnosis.

Keywords: autoimmune thyroiditis; industrial environment; petroleum byproducts; primary hypothyroidism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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