Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Treating thryoid antibodies in pregnancy

The effects of selenium in pregnancy were recently evaluated in a study performed in Italy. This study is of interest to me since we have been using selenium to reduce thryoid antibody levels in women with recurrent miscarriage. Selenium has been found in well controlled studies to reduce thryoid antibody levels but it has neve been evaluated in a pregnant population before.


Approximately 150 pregnant with with elevated levels of one group of thyroid antibodies were split into two equal groups. One group received 200 micrograms of selenium and the other group received placebo. During pregnancy and post-partum, more women who took the placebo were more likely to show evidence of thyroid malfunction and need thyroid hormone supplementation.


The levels of thyroid antibodies were reduced in women who took selenium.


Although this study still does not prove that selenium will reduce the risk of miscarriage in these patients, it does indicate that the antibody lowering effects are similar to that seen in non pregnant patients. It also appears to be safe during pregnancy.