Ultrasonography of the thyroid gland in pregnancies complicated by autoimmune thyroid disease

Thyroid function and ultrasonographically determined thyroid volume were studied in nine pregnant women with diagnosed autoimmune thyroid disease at regular intervals during pregnancy and two months after delivery. The results were compared to the findings in ten healthy pregnant women. In ultrasound examinations seven of the patients showed definite morphological changes such as hypoechogeneity and inhomogeneity of the thyroid gland, which did not change during the course of pregnancy nor during the post-partum period of eight weeks. There were no morphological changes in the thyroid glands of the control group. The mean thyroid volume did not significantly change during pregnancy and after delivery in both the patient group and controls. The mean thyroid volume was smaller in the study group, with 7.55 ml (SD 6.01) compared to the controls with 11.29 ml (SD 5.61), a difference which was not statistically significant. Neither course of pregnancy nor fetal outcome was influenced by inactive autoimmune disease of the thyroid.