Response to thyrotropin-releasing hormone stimulation tests in preterm infants with transient hypothyroxinemia of prematurity.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Whether hormone supplementation is necessary for infants with transient hypothyroxinemia of prematurity (THOP) remains controversial, and further analysis of the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis of infants with THOP is necessary. STUDY DESIGN: Thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) stimulation tests were performed at 2 weeks of age in 50 infants with a gestational age of 30 weeks or less, and the data were analyzed retrospectively. RESULT: Subjects were divided into three groups; group A consisted of euthyroid infants, group B consisted of infants with THOP and group C consisted of hypothyroid infants. The basal and peak thyroid-stimulating hormone level of group C in response to TRH stimulation tests was significantly higher than the others, but no differences were observed between groups A and B. CONCLUSION: The response of infants with THOP to the TRH stimulation test was not different from that of euthyroid infants, which suggested that their hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis was appropriately regulated in infants with THOP.