Objective: To investigate the long-term effects of iodophor on thyroid function and autoimmunity in females.
Methods: 119 medical personnel who have been using iodophor as preoperative skin disinfectant more for than 2 years and 123 medical personnel who have not exposed to iodophor were studied. The urinary iodine, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free triiodothyronine (FT(3)), free thyroxine (FT(4)), thyroid peroxydase antibody (TPO-Ab) and TG-Ab in serum were measured and the thyroid were examined by B mode ultrasound apparatus.
Results: The median urinary iodine (MUI) was 300.4 micro g/L in the exposed group, not significantly higher than that in the non-exposed group (269.1 micro g/L, P > 0.05). The TSH levels of the exposed group and non-exposed group were 1.66 mU/L and 1.62 mU/L (P = 0.84). B mode ultrasound examination showed that the prevalence rate of thyroid disorders was 3.36% in the exposed group, not significantly different from that in the non-exposed group (2.44%). The thyroid autoantibody positive rate was not significantly different between these two groups too. The titer of autoantibody in the exposed group was 29.5 IU/L, significantly higher than that in the non-exposed group (22.4 IU/L, P = 0.048). The titer of TG-Ab in the exposed group was 21.85 IU/L, not significantly different from that in the non-exposed group (18.7 IU/L, P = 0.542). The mean titer of TPO-Ab in exposed group was 29.5 IU/L, significantly higher than that in non-exposed group (22.4 IU/L, P = 0.048). The total prevalence rate of all sorts of thyroid disorders in the exposed group was 11.76%, significantly higher than that in non-exposed group (4.07%, P = 0.026). The thyroid disorders discovered included clinical hyperthyroidism and subclinical hypothyroidism.
Conclusion: Using iodophor as preoperative skin disinfectant may result in an increased incidence of thyroid disorders in female medical personnel. Medical personnel with iodophor exposure history should have their thyroid function and thyroid autoimmune status examined regularly.