Elevated Serum Thyroglobulin and Low Iodine Intake Are Associated with Nontoxic Nodular Goiter among Adults Living near the Eastern Mediterranean Coast

Table 1

Diagnostic criteria for thyroid diseases.

Thyroid disease	Diagnostic criteria
Nodular goiter
Single nodule	Goiter with nodule >5 mm in diameter
Multiple nodules	≥2 nodules >5 mm in diameter
Hypothyroidism
Overt	Serum TSH > 4 mIU/L, FT4 < 0.8 ng/dL
Subclinical	Serum TSH > 4 mIU/L, FT4 within the normal range
With Hashimoto thyroiditis	TPOAb > 35 IU/mL with or without nodular goiter (with overt or subclinical hypothyroidism)

The reference range for FT4 is 0.8 to 1.8 ng/dL; to convert values for FT4 from ng/dL to pmol/L, multiply by 12.87.
ng/dL: nanogram per deciliter; pmol/L: picomoles per liter; mIU/L: milli-international units per liter; FT4: free thyroxine; TPOAb: thyroid peroxidase antibody; TSH: thyrotropin.