Various issues may occur when your thyroid disease produces too much hormone (hyperthyroidism) or not enough hormone (hypothyroidism). The most prevalent thyroid-related disorders are thyroid cancer, goiter, thyroid nodules, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, and Graves’ disease.
A tiny gland in the form of a butterfly, the thyroid is situated at the base of the neck, right below the throat. It’s a component of the endocrine system, a complex web of glands
Many of your body’s functions are coordinated by your endocrine system. Your thyroid gland produces hormones that control the metabolism of your body.
What Causes Thyroid Problems?
When your thyroid produces too much hormone (hyperthyroidism) or not enough hormone (hypothyroidism), several various issues may occur.
It may be uncomfortable to experience irritation, exhaustion, weight loss, weight gain, and more when your thyroid is underproducing or overproducing.
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Graves’ disease, goiter (enlarged thyroid), and thyroid nodules are four prevalent conditions affecting the thyroid. By reading on, learn more about common thyroid conditions, including their symptoms and treatments.
Hyperthyroidism
Your thyroid gland is hyperactive if you have hyperthyroidism. Too much thyroid hormone is produced. Many of your body’s processes may speed up due to this.
Between 1 and 3 percent of Americans suffer from hyperthyroidism, which is more prevalent in women.
About 70% of persons with hyperthyroidism have Graves’ disease, the most prevalent cause. The thyroid gland may also overproduce hormones if it has nodules, a condition known as toxic nodular goiter or multinodular goiter.
Additional factors that might result in hyperthyroidism include:
- Thyroid gland swelling
- Excessive iodine consumption
- Using excessive doses of thyroid hormone therapy
- Thyroid nodules that are too active are commonly referred to as toxic nodular goiter or multinodular goiter.
- Non-cancerous tumor of the pituitary gland
Treatment And Diagnosis Of Hyperthyroidism
Tests that measure your thyroid disease hormone levels or how well your thyroid is functioning may help a doctor or healthcare provider identify hyperthyroidism.
Thyroxine, often known as T4, and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) are detected by a blood test. Your pituitary gland releases TSH to encourage the production of thyroid hormones. Your thyroid gland may be hyperactive if your thyroxine levels are high and your TSH levels are low.
Additionally, your doctor could provide radioactive iodine orally or intravenously while monitoring the amount your thyroid gland absorbs. Your thyroid ingests iodine so that it may manufacture hormones. It indicates an overactive thyroid disease when you consume a lot of radioactive iodine. This little radioactivity dissipates fast and poses no threat to most individuals.
Your thyroid gland may be destroyed during hyperthyroidism treatments or prevented from generating hormones. Treatments may consist of:
Antithyroid Drugs
Methimazole (Tapazole), an antithyroid medication, may stop your thyroid from generating hormones and lessen symptoms.
Radioiodine Treatment
Your thyroid gland is harmed by receiving a lot of radioactive iodine. It is ingested orally as a tablet or drink. As iodine enters your thyroid gland, radioactive iodine also binds to it, harming the gland. However, women who are nursing or who are pregnant should avoid using this option.
Beta-blockers
Beta-blockers may aid in symptom reduction.
Surgery
Your thyroid gland may be removed surgically. Your thyroid disease levels may return to normal as a result of this.
You will develop hypothyroidism and need daily thyroid hormone therapy if you get radioactive iodine therapy or surgery that removes your thyroid gland.
Hypothyroidism
The opposite of hyperthyroidism is hypothyroidism. You don’t have enough of your thyroid gland’s hormones because it is underactive. Some of your body’s processes may become slower as a result.
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, thyroid disease gland removal surgery, and radiation damage are the most common causes of hypothyroidism.
It may also be brought on by:
- Thyroiditis
- Congenital hypothyroidism is a disorder that may be present at birth
- Iodine shortage
- Abnormalities of the hypothalamus or pituitary gland
Drugs like those for treating cancer, heart disease, and bipolar disorder. If you have other medical illnesses like celiac disease, type 1 or type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, or lupus, you may be more susceptible to getting it
It affects around 4.3 percent of Americans aged 12 and older in the United States. Mild hypothyroidism cases are possible.
Signs Of Hypothyroidism
Symptoms caused by insufficient thyroid hormone production include:
- Fatigue
- Dry hair and skin
- Heightened sensitivity to the cold
- Memory issues
- Constipation
- Depression
- Gaining weight
- Weakness or aching joints and muscles
- Sluggish heartbeat
- Heavy and erratic menstrual cycles
- Infertility issues
- Coma
Treatment And Diagnosis Of Hypothyroidism
Doctors often use blood tests and imaging studies to identify hypothyroidism.
A doctor will draw blood to assess your TSH and thyroid hormone levels. Your thyroid may be underactive if your TSH levels are high and your thyroxine levels are low. These levels may also be a sign that your pituitary gland is producing more TSH to get your thyroid to start stimulating its hormone.
Ultrasounds and scans that check your thyroid function with radioactive iodine are examples of imaging testing.
Taking thyroid hormone tablets is the primary therapy for hypothyroidism. A correct dose is crucial since taking too much thyroid hormone might result in hyperthyroidism symptoms.
Pregnant women with hypothyroidism may need more significant or more frequent doses of medication.
Typical Thyroid Issues
Thyroiditis With Hashimoto’s
Chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis is another name for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. About 5 out of every 100 Americans are affected, making it the most prevalent cause of hypothyroidism in the countryTrusted Source. Although it may happen at any age, middle-aged women are the most likely to experience it. The disorder develops when your thyroid gland and its capacity to create hormones are unintentionally attacked by your body’s immune system and progressively destroyed.
Some patients with moderate Hashimoto’s thyroiditis may have no overt symptoms. Years might pass with little change in the illness, and symptoms are often mild. They also share symptoms with many other diseases since they are non-specific.
Symptoms Of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Typical signs may include:
- Fatigue
- Depression
- Constipation
- Moderate weight increase
- Arid skin
- Thinning, dry hair
- Paleness, a swollen face
- If you menstruate, you may have excessive or irregular bleeding
- Resistance to the cold
Diagnosis And Treatment Of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
When screening for any form of thyroid problem, measuring the amount of TSH is often the initial step. If you have any of the symptoms listed above, your doctor may suggest a blood test to look for elevated TSH levels and low thyroid hormone levels (T3 or T4). Due to the autoimmune nature of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, a blood test might also reveal unusual antibodies that may be attacking your thyroid.
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis currently has no identified treatments. Medication that replaces hormones is often used to increase thyroid hormone levels or decrease TSH levels. It may also aid in reducing your disease’s symptoms. Because the illness advances slowly, it is often detected early on and may last for years without changing.
Goitre
A goiter is a benign growth of your thyroid gland. Iodine deficiency in the diet is the leading cause of goiter globally. According to estimates, goiters affect 15.8% of the general population worldwide. However, this proportion fluctuates and is more prevalent in regions with severe iodine deficits. Goiter affects 4.7 percent of the general population in the United States.
Anyone at any age may get goiter, particularly in regions where iodine-rich foods are hard to come by.
But iodine shortage is not the only factor in certain instances of goiter. Goiters may also result from:
- Graves’ illness
- A congenital thyroid condition
- Thyroiditis
- Tumors of the pituitary gland
Goiters are more prevalent in those over 40 and women, increasing your risk of having a thyroid condition. Other risk factors include your family’s medical history, the use of certain medications, pregnancy, and radiation exposure.
Goiter Signs
If your goiter is not severe, you may not experience any symptoms. If your goiter becomes big enough, it can result in one or more symptoms. These signs may manifest as:
- You have neck discomfort or edema
- Breathing or swallowing challenges
- Wheeze or coughing
- Squeaky voice
Diagnosis And Treatment Of Goiters
The diagnostic procedures used to check for hyperthyroidism may also be used to identify goiters.
During a typical physical examination, a doctor will feel your neck region and have you swallow. Thyroid hormone, TSH, and antibody levels in your blood will be determined by blood testing. The diagnosis of thyroid conditions, which often result in goiter, will be made using the information provided. You may have an ultrasound of your thyroid to look for any swelling or nodules.
Typically, goiter is only treated when severe enough to manifest symptoms.
The therapies frequently overlap because a goiter is often a sign of hyperthyroidism. Goiters often coexist with thyroid conditions like Graves’ disease, which are very curable.
Surgery to wholly or partially remove your thyroid gland or radioactive iodine therapy to shrink your thyroid gland are also possible forms of treatment.
Goiters often don’t cause alarm, but they may have catastrophic consequences if they aren’t treated. These issues may include breathing and swallowing issues.
Thyroid Tumors
Growths called thyroid nodules may develop on or within your thyroid gland. According to a 2015 research that divided the population into men and women, in nations with ample iodine, roughly 1% of men and 5% of women had thyroid nodules that were big enough to feel.
Women are nearly four times more likely than males to have thyroid nodules, and men are twice as likely to get thyroid cancer, with rates of 8 and 4 percent, respectively. The likelihood of getting nodules rises with age, much like other thyroid-related issues.
Iodine deficiency and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis are two potential reasons, albeit they’re not usually understood. Both solid and liquid-filled nodules are possible.
The majority of nodules are benign. However, they may sometimes be malignant.
The majority of thyroid nodules are symptomless. But if they become big enough, they may enlarge your neck, make it painful and difficult to breathe and swallow, and even develop a goiter.
Thyroid Nodule Symptoms
Thyroid hormone production by specific nodules results in unusually high blood levels. The signs and symptoms of this might include those of hyperthyroidism and include:
- Rapid heart rate
- Nervousness
- Greater appetite
- Shaking
- Slim down
- Cold skin
On the other hand, symptoms might include the following if the nodules do not overproduce thyroid hormone or show signs of hypothyroidism:
- Fatigue
- Gaining weight
- Hair fall
- Arid skin
- Heightened sensitivity to the cold
These symptoms are not brought on by thyroid nodules that do not overproduce thyroid hormone or are not linked to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
Treatment And Diagnosis Of Thyroid Nodules
During a typical physical examination, nodules might be found.
But a doctor will probably do other testing. These may consist of:
- An ultrasonogram
- If your esophagus or trachea are compressed, it may be determined with further imaging, such as a CT scan.
- A TSH test and thyroid scan are available for either hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism.
- A fine-needle aspiration biopsy to check for malignancy in your nodule
Most of the time, benign thyroid nodules are not life-threatening and don’t need treatment. If the nodule stays the same over time, it is often left alone and not removed. A doctor could do a second biopsy and advise radioactive iodine if the lesion expands.
Cancerous nodules are relatively uncommon. Thyroid cancer accounts for just 4 to 6.5 percent Source of thyroid nodules.
Depending on your tumor type, a doctor may prescribe a different course of action. Typical treatments for malignant thyroid nodules include:
Surgery
Surgery to remove your thyroid is often the preferred course of action.
Iodine is radioactive. Depending on the risk of recurrence, this may also be administered following surgery.
Radiation treatment
Surgery may sometimes be combined with radiation treatment. You could benefit from external beam radiation treatment if you have bulky disease, Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Chemotherapy
Rarely used if cancer spreads to other bodily areas.