Evaluation of Radioactive Iodine (I131) as a Treatment for Hyperthyroidism

Abstract

RADIOACTIVE iodine, although an effective form of treatment for hyperthyroidism, has the disadvantage that response of patients to a selected dose varies widely. As yet no method has been devised to select a dose that would be uniformly satisfactory. A quantity that may restore normal thyroid function in one patient may prove entirely ineffective in another, and a similar dose may even induce lasting myxedema in a seemingly comparable case. Myxedema is an undesirable therapeutic result, and, on the other hand, repeated trials with doses that prove inadequate may delay recovery for a year or longer. The current study was . . .