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Handbook of Clinical Laboratory Testing During Pregnancy pp 181–194Cite as

Thyroid Disease During Pregnancy

Assessment of the Fetus

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Part of the book series: Current Clinical Pathology ((CCPATH))

Abstract

Fetal thyroid metabolism depends on normal fetal thyroid development and hormonogenesis as well as normal maternal thyroid physiology. Thyroid hormone production has been detected in the fetus as early as 10 wk gestation, and thyroid follicles have been identified histologically by 12 wk (1,2) From the 13th wk of gestation until the third trimester, there are increases in fetal serum concentrations of thyroxine (T4), thyroxine-binding globulin (TBG), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), independent of maternal serum concentrations (3,4), indicating maturation of the fetal thyroid gland. Tri-iodothyroinine (T3) does not rise significantly until the third trimester (3), a finding that is explained by the late appearance of type I deiodinase, which catalyses the synthesis of T3 from T4.

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Authors
  1. Pratima K. Singh MD
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  2. Ann M. Gronowski PhD, DABCC
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Pathology and Immunology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University School of Medicine, and Clinical Chemistry and Serology Laboratories, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, MO, USA

    Ann M. Gronowski PhD, DABCC

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© 2004 Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

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Singh, P.K., Gronowski, A.M. (2004). Thyroid Disease During Pregnancy. In: Gronowski, A.M. (eds) Handbook of Clinical Laboratory Testing During Pregnancy. Current Clinical Pathology. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-787-1_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-787-1_9

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

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