Question

A pregnant female delivers a baby who suffers from stunted growth, mental retardation, low intelligence quotient, and abnormal skin. It is due to
A. Oversecretion of pars distalis
B. Deficiency of iodine in the diet
C. Low secretion of growth hormone
D. Cancer of the thyroid gland

Answer 1

Cretinism or also known as congenital iodine deficiency syndrome, which is a condition that is seen during birth, where the child is physically impaired and is born with mental development. It is a condition caused by poor diet and deficiency of salt during pregnancy which causes hypothyroidism in both the mother and the baby.

Complete answer: Cretinism is a congenital condition observed during birth where the child has a physical and mental disability. It is also known as the congenital iodine deficiency syndrome, where, during pregnancy, enough iodine was not available to the developing embryo leading to hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism causes no or reduced production of the thyroid hormone thyroxine. Thyroxine is a metabolic hormone crucial to maintain basal metabolic activity and ensure the development of the fetus. Symptoms include goitre, short stature, thick skin, speech difficulties, etc. In many countries, prenatal thyroid testing can detect such issues immediately and administer thyroid treatment. Advances in medical sciences have eliminated the threat of this disease today. This disorder is circumstantial and depends on the diet of the infant and or mother and mainly the deficiency of iodine in the diet. Oversecretion of GH causes gigantism and over secretion of ACTH causes cushing syndrome. Low secretions of GH cause dwarfism and tumour in the thyroid.
Therefore the correct answer is option B.

Note: The thyroid hormone improves metabolic activity, and in a developing fetus, where every cell is growing and developing, metabolic activity needs to be maintained, and a lack of such causes such disorders. Hypothyroidism can develop later in life and is termed as Hashimoto's disease. The pars distalis is the anterior pituitary and is responsible for the secretion of GH and ACTH.