Burden of iodine deficiency disorders and its association with various sociodemographic variables in a district of North East India.

Introduction: Iodine is one such micronutrient, the deficiency of which can impair the mental growth and development of young children and is the leading cause of preventable mental impairment. The present study has been conducted to study the prevalence of iodine deficiency disorders (IDDs) and its association with various sociodemographic variables among children (6-12 years) residing in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya. Methods: The sample size was 2700 with a multistage 30 cluster sampling method. A questionnaire was used to collect data on the various sociodemographic variables. The weight and height of each child were recorded as per the standard procedure. In order to assess goitre, children were examined as per standard procedures prescribed by the National Iodine Deficiency Disorder Control Programme (NIDDCP). Results: A total of 2700 children were interviewed in total. Out of these, 1365 (50.5%) were males. The total goitre rate was found to be 195 (7.22%), indicating that IDDs are a mild public health problem in the study area. The median (interquartile range) urinary iodine excretion levels were 150 (108.05-189.37) mg/L. With respect to weight-for-age, it was observed that 93 (3.9%) children were severely underweight and 389 (16.8%) had severe stunting. A significant association was observed between goitre with the age group of children (p <.00001), maternal education (p <.00001), prevalence of stunting (p <.00001), and underweight (p <.05).