Pitfalls in diagnostic use of radioactive iodine.

Abstract

The relatively recent introduction of the use of tracer doses of radioactive iodine (I 131 ) in diagnosis of thyroid disorders has had widespread acceptance. It is not our purpose to deprecate the usefulness of this procedure, but we are convinced that its limitations must be considered. Uncritical reliance upon techniques using I 131 has led to the abandonment of older diagnostic procedures that have stood the test of time. We have particular reference to the disrepute into which the determination of the basal metabolic rate has fallen. This desuetude is, in our opinion, unjustified, even if one gives full weight to all the errors inherent in this test. We also wish to emphasize that the diagnosis of the presence or absence of thyroid disease is the province solely of the clinician and the only function of the laboratory is to give him data that he must then evaluate with all the