Hypothyroidism and perchlorate: an ecological study of hypothyroidism in the Maltese Islands.

Background One of the lesser-known comes of hypothyroidsm Is Perchlorate exposure. a by-product of legwork:. Recent; ludic in the Mehra island: showed increased concentrator, of perchlorate in dust fat leading to public concerns about as health effects. This study alms to exanSne the hypothyroidism trends In the resident Maltese population and assess for a ink with perchlorate exposure. Methods A retrospective ecological study using laboratory and population data was carried out to calculate the crude and direct age-standardised incidence rates of hypothymicrom in the resident population. Results Stginercanty lower overall age-standardised incidence rates for hypothyroidism were found In the region of Gozo: however no clearly climemitde geographical pattern of hypothyroidism with clear potential link to perchlorate exposure was found. Concluson The lower hypothyroid incidence rates n Gozo warrant a comparative study to establish whether that deference attributable to differing levels of perchlorate exposure from deferent scale of firework use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]