title: Significant changes in thyroid hormone parameters after a four week recreation period at the North Sea without alterations of iodine intake.
abstract: Many studies have been carried out evaluating thyroid hormone parameters in patients suffering from various illnessess. However data on thyroid function after a recreation period are missing. Therefore we evaluated thyroid hormone parameters in 178 patients (mostly suffering from chronic obstructive lung disease) undergoing a four week recreation period in a health spa on the island Borkum at the North Sea. We observed a subtle, but significant increase in basal TSH concentrations from 1.20 mU/l (median) to 1.50 mU/l; (p<0. 001) and a fall in T4 values from 97.5 +/- 17.7 nmol/l (mean +/- SD) to 90.3 +/- 17.0 (p<0.001) and T3 from 2.21 +/- 0.33 nmol/l to 2.09 +/- 0.33 (p<0.001). However no increase in iodine intake occurred during the four weeks: median iodine excretion 61 microg iodine/g creatinine at the beginning vs 65 microg iodine/g creatinine at the end.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  a recreation period at the North Sea is associated with subtle but significant changes in thyroid hormone parameters. However no increase in iodine intake occurs during the four week observation period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, University of Essen, Germany.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Reinhardt
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Freygang
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kummer
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gosselink
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jockenhövel
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Benker
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Reinwein
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007455:Iodine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009659:North Sea; D011998:Recreation / Q000502:physiology; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012907:Smoking; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D013972:Thyrotropin / Q000097:blood; D013974:Thyroxine / Q000097:blood; D014195:Travel; D014284:Triiodothyronine / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D013963:Thyroid Hormones; D014284:Triiodothyronine; D013972:Thyrotropin; D007455:Iodine; D013974:Thyroxine