Requesting iodine supplementation in children on parenteral nutrition

AIMS: Iodine supplementation of parenterally fed infants recommended by ESPGHAN is 1 microg/kg/day. To assess nutritional and thyroid status of children on parenteral nutrition (PN) through urinary iodine concentration (UIC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Children (1-17 yrs), undergoing PN and receiving an iodine supply of 1 microg/kg/day, were enrolled from 2000 to 2007. RESULTS: We observed 15 children (10 males, mean age 76.53+/-60.4 months) on PN from 14 to 84 weeks (mean 38.5+/-21.4). Ten were on TPN and five on PPN; nine had short bowel syndrome (SBS) and six had other intestinal diseases requiring PN. Iodine supply in TPN ranged between 1 and 1.6 microg/kg/day (mean 1.1+/-0.3 microg/kg/day), while in PPN it ranged from 2.3 to 2.8 microg/kg/day (mean 2.6+/-0.7 microg/kg/day). We found an inverse correlation between duration of PN in months and UIC (P=0.05). Four weeks after PN onset, UIC<100 microg/L was found in all SBS patients and 3/6 non-SBS patients (P<0.05). After 12 weeks, 8/15 (53%) patients had UIC<50 microg/L, but thyroxine, TSH and thyroid volume remained unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: A PN iodine supply of 1 microg/kg/day may be suboptimal. Higher supplies should be evaluated in controlled trials.