Your thyroid controls a bunch of important bodily functions. You'll be able to assume of this - the biggest of your endocrine glands - as a master regulator. Located within your neck simply below your Adam's apple, the thyroid controls the speed at that your body burns energy (calories). It additionally controls the right functioning of different hormones.
When your thyroid is healthy, it is one of these glands that you will never see, feel or perhaps want to assume about. It just silently and faithfully will its job, creating sure that your body's ability to access and burn energy is humming along simply fine.
However, the thyroid can develop a variety of issues, a number of which may require the removal of half or all of your thyroid.
Common Thyroid Problems
There a number of potential diseases of the thyroid, together with Hashimoto's disease, Graves' disease, hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism. All of those involve the thyroid producing an excessive amount of or too little thyroid hormone.
Another common thyroid problem is that of a lump or mass on the gland itself.
Mass on the Thyroid
You'll have noticed a visible lump or bump in the neck area on yourself, a loved one or an acquaintance. Or, a medical skilled could have discovered such a lump when performing a routine checkup or a CT, MRI or ultrasound scan of the neck. In some cases, this lump could turn out to be a thyroid nodule.
There are 2 main reasons for a lumpy thyroid: a nodule or a thyroid enlargement.
Enlarged thyroids are different than nodules in that enlarged thyroids sometimes have an effect on the complete gland, rather than just having bumps here or there on one or each of the lobes. An enlarged thyroid - additionally known as a goiter - is a benign (not cancerous) condition typically caused by iodine deficiency. Goiter will also be caused by Hashimoto's disease or Graves' disease (see higher than). Goiter might not need to be treated, or in some case it's treated with antithyroid medication, removal of the thyroid, or iodine-131 treatments.
On the opposite handle, thyroid nodules are more specific to one or more areas of thyroid, rather than a generalized enlargement.
Facts regarding Thyroid Nodules
The overwhelming majority - concerning ninety five% - of thyroid nodules are benign, that means that they're not cancerous. Of course, thyroid nodules rarely need treatment if they're determined to be:
* not cancerous (benign)
* not causing any different troubles, like pressing on alternative structure in the neck or body
* not inflicting the gland to form too much thyroid hormone
A straightforward biopsy will be able to determine whether the nodule is benign or cancerous. If the nodule is cancerous or is otherwise causing issues, the physician may opt for to treat it via hormone pills, radioactive iodine (iodine-131), or direct injections into the gland with ethyl alcohol.
In some cases, thyroid surgery is needed to remove the thyroid completely. Also referred to as a thyroidectomy, this sort of treatment has very high success rates, and patients will sometimes expect a smooth recovery.
Should your doctor decide that your thyroid is to be removed via surgery due to a mass or nodule being discovered there, this should not be a cause for concern. By following the proper steps once surgery, you'll be able to expect a full recovery and, with the assistance of thyroid supplements, not even notice the absence of this terribly vital gland.
Author Resource:
Riley Jones has been writing articles online for nearly 2 years now. Not only does this author specialize in Thyroid, you can also check out his latest website about:
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