128 DASA 2019-2 dwarfed boys that were four years behind in growt) and development show a definite correlation there. So, beginning twe years igo it was decided that we shuuld treat all of these exposed people with thyroid horinone in the hope of reducing further development of nodules, iv prevent cancer and hopefully, give an increased growth rate in those children that had shown the lag. Figure 19 shows the skeletal age development of the two boys that were most dwarfed. You can see that at the time of thyroid hormone therapy institution there was an almost immediate spurtin growth. We hope that in the next survey we will see increased growth rate in other children as a response to the treatment with the thyroid hormone. We are havin; difficulties getting these people to take their daily tablets. They just don't seem to want to doit. I was very disappointed when I returned from the last survey to find that the blood levels of the thyroid hormone in the affected children were quite low, which meant that a lot of them were not taking the drug. So we have a real problem getting them to take the drug for the rest of their lives, par- ticularly the children.- : DOBSON: Bob, in your earlier discussion of these patients, did I understand you to say that you are differentiating among different jodine-carrying proteins in the blood? 8 TT r + T SKELETAL AGE DEVELOPMENT SUBJECTS #3 AND @5 4 tak wn 4 ted . TMYROIO = HORMONE staatec} Bb MEDIAN CURVE UNEXPOSED BOYS 3 st < a = > ts a & SFr 4 3 4 L 3 i J 4 € 3 rr} ‘s CHRONOLOGICAL AGE (YEARS) Figure 19. Skeletal age development before and after hormone therepy in two boys showing greatest growth retardation. From R. Conerd (Courtesy Annals Int. Med.).