Thyroid

The butterfly gland of our body, more commonly known as Thyroid Gland, has never been given importance. Yes, it is true that we never give a thought to our health or Thyroid Gland. Through the hormones it produces, the thyroid gland influences almost all of the metabolic processes in your body. Thyroid disorders can range from a small, harmless goiter (enlarged gland) that needs no treatment to life-threatening cancer. Thyroid can always be considered as one of your hard working glands, this is the gland, which tells your body how fast to tick over by generating the known hormone called thyroxine

     A gland that is tucked away at the front of your neck, which is approximately about the size and shape of a bow-tie, might be giving you some kind of alarming requests, for getting them checked. The most common thyroid problems involve abnormal production of thyroid hormones. Too much thyroid hormone results in a condition known as hyperthyroidism. Insufficient hormone production leads to hypothyroidism. Although the effects can be unpleasant or uncomfortable, most thyroid problems can be managed well if properly diagnosed and treated.

Types of Thyroid

1.  Hypothyroidism:  Hypothyroidism by contrast, stems from an underproduction of thyroid hormones. This is a condition, which is denoted by a dip in the thyroid hormones in the blood. It majorly happens if one is suffering from underactive thyroid or gland that simply controls the thyroid functions, though there are various other causes that also can lead to this condition.  Since your body’s energy production requires certain amounts of thyroid hormones, a drop in hormone production leads to lower energy levels. .  It is habitually noticed that hypothyroidism affects women more than men in comparison and gets worse as one becomes older. This also needs to be tackled during pregnancy

Cause of Hypothyroid

  • Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: : It has been often seen that most women suffer from this particular autoimmune condition more than men does and can indeed have this condition has an underlying genetic link, and hence runs in the families In this autoimmune disorder, the body attacks thyroid tissue. The tissue eventually dies and stops producing hormones. Some people with mild cases of Hashimoto’s disease may have no obvious symptoms. The disease can remain stable for years, and symptoms are often subtle.
  • The medications taken to treat Hyperthyroid: Sometimes there are certain medications that are completely prescribed to control the process of hyperthyroidism and can simply lead to hypothyroidism making the entire thyroid gland function sub-optimally.
  • Removal of the thyroid gland: The thyroid may have been surgically removed or chemically destroyed.
  • The process of malfunctioning of other important  glands in the system : Now and then one might have a perfect healthy gland but at the same time can still suffer from the problem of hypothyroidism, if the glands that indeed regulate the function of thyroid goes haywire. 
  • Exposure to excessive amounts of iodide: Cold and sinus medicines, the heart medicine amiodarone or certain contrast dyes given before some X-rays may expose you to too much iodine. A diet that is low in iodine has always been seen to be a major cause of hypothyroidism in adults. It is also noticed that areas that have low sources of iodine can have more number of people suffering from this condition. You may be at greater risk for developing hypothyroidism if you have had thyroid problems in the past
  • Lithium: This drug has also been implicated as a cause of hypothyroidism.

Symptoms of Hypothyroid:

  • Fatigue
  • itching
  • dry skin
  • increased sensitivity to cold
  • Increased appetite
  • weakness
  • slow heart rate
  • breast development in men
  • depression
  • weight gain
  • vomiting
  • memory problems
  • constipation
  • Dizziness

Diagnosis:

Your doctor will perform blood tests to measure your TSH and thyroid hormone levels. A high TSH level and low thyroxine level could mean that your thyroid is underactive. These levels could also indicate that your pituitary gland is releasing more TSH to try to stimulate the thyroid gland to make its hormone.

  • Cholesterol test
  • These tests measure how much thyroid hormone (T4 and T3) is in your blood.
  • Hormone level test
  • Ultrasound
  • MRI

2. Hyper thyroid

In hyperthyroidism the thyroid gland is overactive. It produces too much of its hormone. Hyperthyroidism affects about 1 percent of women. It’s less common in men. Graves’ disease is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism, affecting about 70 percent of people with an overactive thyroid. Nodules on the thyroid — a condition called toxic nodular goiter or multinodular goiter can also cause the gland to overproduce its hormones.

Causes for Hyper thyroid:

  • excess iodine, a key ingredient in T4 and T3
  • thyroiditis, or inflammation of the thyroid, which causes T4 and T3 to leak out of the gland
  • tumors of the ovaries or testes
  • being tumors of the thyroid or pituitary gland
  • large amounts of tetraiodothyronine taken through dietary supplements or medication

Symptoms of Hyper thyroid:

  • Nervousness
  • Restlessness
  • shaking
  • muscle weakness
  • weight loss
  • bulging eyes
  • anxiety
  • trouble sleeping
  • thin skin
  • brittle hair and nails
  • Racing heart
  • irritability
  • increased sweating

Diagnosis:

A blood test measures levels of thyroid hormone (thyroxine, or T4) and TSH in your blood. The pituitary gland releases TSH to stimulate the thyroid to produce its hormones. High thyroxine and low TSH levels indicate that your thyroid gland is overactive.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *