What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Childhood Hypothyroid Disease?

Hypothyroidism in children can cause many debilitating symptoms that can affect the child well into adulthood. The condition is caused by either an absence of the thyroid gland or deterioration of the gland through genetic abnormalities. Symptoms and signs, such as impaired motor function, hoarse crying and darkened skin, appear soon after birth and must be dealt with quickly to avoid permanent damage to the child's brain development.

Iodine Deficiency

• Endemic cretinism is the medical term for the syndrome that causes deaf-mutism. The syndrome in and of itself is a symptom of the iodine deficiency caused by hypothyroidism in an infant during pregnancy. Infants may only show signs of spasticity, which is the brain continually sending signals to the muscle tissue to contract or tighten. The child's skin, arms and legs will feel hard and tense, not soft and supple as is usually the case with infant body structure.

Mental Impairment

• Damage to the brain caused by hypothyroidism in children shows its symptoms over time and can be more debilitating than any outward physical symptoms. Intellectual slowing and short stature appear as the child ages if the disorder has gone undiagnosed (and therefore untreated) through the child's infant and adolescent years. This stunted intellectual growth cannot be "undone" through treatment of the disorder, though the outward symptoms (muscle tightening, hard skin, etc.) may be reversed.

Gastrointestinal Symptoms

• Children with hypothyroidism may experience chronic constipation and weight gain or the inability to lose weight through exercise. When combined with short stature and impaired cognitive function, these symptoms can appear similar to Down's Syndrome. Symptoms are treated and easily reversed (save for mental degradation) through lifelong replacement of the thyroid hormone with a once-a-day pill.