[Iodine deficiency in Germany].

Urinary iodine excretion was determined in 2094 adults from 36 cities in the Federal Republic of Germany. The mean concentration was 94.1 +/- 93.1, median 66 micrograms iodine/g creatinine, or 6.2 +/- 6.0, median 4,4 iodine/dl urine, respectively. 194 (9.2%) subjects had an iodine excretion > 600 micrograms iodine/g creatinine or > 40 micrograms iodine/dl, which cannot be reached by normal nutrition. The median excretion found in West Germany (70.2 micrograms iodine/g creatinine and 5.0 iodine/dl urine, respectively) was higher than in East Germany (61.3 and 3.9, respectively), however the difference was not significant. There was no slope of urinary iodine excretion from North to South. The iodine creatinine index when compared with the iodine concentration alone did not improve the epidemiological accuracy (r = 0.75, p < 0.01). The iodine intake of the population is still below the minimum of the WHO recommendation. An efficient iodized salt prophylaxis would save approximately 1.3 billion DM annually and contribute to a genuine reduction in health-care costs.