Question

A pregnant female delivers a baby, who suffers from stunted growth, mental retardation, low intelligence quotient and abnormal skin. This is the result of

• A. deficiency of iodine in diet.
• B. low secretion of growth hormone.
• C. cancer of the thyroid gland.
• D. oversecretion of TSH.

Answer 1

The correct option is A deficiency of iodine in diet.

Iodine is an essential component of the thyroid hormones $T_3$ and $T_4$. The deficiency of iodine in the diet when a woman is pregnant causes hypothyroidism, which in turn causes a condition called cretinism in her child. It involves an abnormal growth and development of the growing baby leading to stunted growth. It also causes mental retardation, low intelligence quotient, abnormal skin, and deaf-mutism.

Low secretion of growth hormone by the anterior pituitary causes stunted growth resulting in dwarfism.

Thyroid cancer may sometimes cause an abnormally increased levels of thyroxine leading to a condition called hyperthyroidism. It causes an abnormal increase in basal metabolic rate.

Oversecretion of TSH causes an overstimulation of the thyroid gland, which can also result in hyperthyroidism.