Disease of autoimmune thyroiditis

The disease with autoimmune thyroiditis (aka Hashimoto's goiter) develops due to a violation of immune reactions and is characterized by inflammation of the thyroid gland. The pathological process is that the body produces antibodies to the cells of the gland, which changes their structure, quantity and function.

Diagnosis: autoimmune thyroiditis

The causes of the disease can be many. One of the main factors is the environment: a person can live in a polluted area (with industrial waste, poisonous chemicals, radiation exposure). The development of autoimmune thyroiditis may be associated with long-term use of lithium-containing drugs and the administration of large doses of iodine. Also Hashimoto's goiter can develop under the influence of the interferon drug. Any virus or bacterial infection, acute or chronic, can trigger the process of the disease. Heredity is also not excluded. Other disorders of the thyroid gland can serve as a background for the occurrence of thyroiditis: endemic or diffuse toxic goiter, cancer or adenoma. The risk group includes people over the age of forty, in particular - women, as well as people with thyroid disorders who have undergone surgery on the gland, as well as patients with diabetes mellitus, ovarian sclerokystosis, galactorrhea-amenorrhea syndrome, autoimmune and allergic diseases.

Symptoms of autoimmune thyroiditis

Usually the disease develops slowly, with a gradual manifestation of symptoms, and can do so in different ways. The hypertrophic form entails a noticeable increase in the thyroid gland, the diseased can experience difficulty in swallowing, a feeling of squeezing the neck, a general weakness. As a rule, there are no painful sensations. An increase in the function of the gland, which is observed in the disease with autoimmune thyroiditis, leads to a feeling of heat, irritability, weight loss, sweating. Over time, the functions of the thyroid gland go away, which leads to a hypothyroid condition, characterized by dry skin, memory impairment, slowing of the heartbeat, weight gain, znoblivostyu, hair loss. At the atrophic form of the disease, there is a gradual decrease in the production of hormones by the thyroid gland. Symptoms are the same as in hypertrophied form. Only in this case it is practically impossible to probe the gland. There is also a latent form of the course of the disease, in which the symptoms do not manifest, so it is possible to determine the presence of the disease only in the course of laboratory investigations.

Autoimmune thyroiditis of thyroid gland: treatment

Zob Hashimoto is treated by normalizing the level of hormones secreted by the thyroid gland into the blood. If the function of production is reduced, life-long substitution therapy is prescribed. It is important to remember that this disease requires constant monitoring by an endocrinologist, since a universal specific treatment for thyroiditis has not been developed to date. Be attentive to your health, especially if it concerns the thyroid gland.