Contents
- Thyroid body: general notions
- Thyroid body hormones
- Thyroid body: causes of diseases
- What influences thyroid body work?
- Hormonal disorder or nervous breakdown?
- Thyroid body: symptoms of hypothesis
- Thyroid body: symptoms of thyrotoxicosis
- Thyroid body: diagnosis and treatment
Morden life can be full of stress. Weakness, fatigue, insomnia – familiar symptoms, aren’t they? Do you know that these signs can be caused not only by stress, but also by a very serious disease? Today a general practitioner is going to speak about how we can distinguish between this dangerous illness and typical life stress.
Thyroid body: general notions
A statement that many diseases are caused by excessive anxieties and stress does make sense. That is why we all do our best to preserve our peace of mind. Nerves of steel is everybody’s dream, who knows what trouble is. In such a situation, very few people think that a weak nervous system in women is not a cause, but a consequence of an internal disorder at work in the body organs, specifically the thyroid gland! In order to acquire tranquillity in your body, you need to sort out your health problems.
The thyroid gland is a small organ, which is found in the frontal area in the neck. It consists of two halves – lobes connected with an isthmus. The thyroid takes an active part in the metabolism, discharging hormones into the blood stream. With an excess amount or lacking of these hormones, practically all systems of internal organs suffer, and our nervous system signals us about it.
It is no wonder that the thyroid gland pathologies can transform a self-confident and equable woman into Fury, capable of spoiling her own mood and the mood of her nearest and dearest for no reason.
The thyroid gland in men is stronger making thyroid disorders rarer. In men’s bodies, all the organ systems work as a clockwork mechanism due to a certain schedule, going not according to this timetable only on the March, 8 and during FIFA World Football Championship.
The work of a woman’s body is under control of special biorhythms: menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, breast feeding, climax – these processes have an influence on the work of the thyroid, and this, in its term, makes us more vulnerable to mood swings, neuroses and depressions.
Thyroid body hormones
The function of the thyroid gland is under the control of the pituitary-hypothalamic system. Affected by TSH (thyreotropic hormone, produced by hypophysis), the thyroid gland speeds up or slows down its activity, discharging larger or smaller amount of the main hormones of thyroxin (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3).
These are the hormones, for production of which, the thyroid gland needs the right amount of iodine that gets into our bodies through food. As soon as our body gets the right amount of hormones, the level of TSH goes down and the thyroid gland activity slows down.
The third hormone, produced by the thyroid gland is calcitonin. This hormone ensures the strength of the bone tissue, nourishing it with calcium and preventing the breakdown of bones.
Thyroid Gland: causes of diseases
The most important function of the thyroid gland is to control the speed of metabolism (turnover of substances in our body).
Despite its small size, (the gland weighs only 25 grams), the thyroid gland subdued practically all the processes in our body. The formation of women’s breasts, the state of skin and hair, the ability to bear and give birth to a healthy child – all these things greatly depend on its work.
The thyroid gland hormones influence our mental activities, sleep and appetite, physical activity, body weight, strength of skeleton bones, heart work and other internal organs.
Not a small part is given to it by the scientists in controlling the work of the immune system and even in the development of the aging processes.
Scientists found out that in 50-60% of cases, thyroid gland pathology is an inherited disease. However, more often aptitude for a disease is inherited, not the disease itself. Under the effect of environmental hazards, this disease can let you know about itself, or it may not.
What influences thyroid gland work?
The first place among the factors influencing the thyroid gland work is occupied by the insufficient amount of iodine coming into our body for an adequate production of T3 and T4 hormones. However, the excessive amount of iodine coming into our body with food and medicines can also cause harm.
It can also be damaged by the excess of sunlight and radiation influence. Sometimes the causes of thyroid gland diseases can be autoimmune processes, when, as a result of the inappropriate work of the immune system, antibodies are produced, that attack thyroid cells, which leads to its breaking down.
Different infections have their influence too – both viral and bacterial.
Sometimes problems with the thyroid gland can be inborn, connected with the fermentation pathology or inappropriate formation of an organ.
Unfortunately, there are problems with the thyroid gland that are connected with neoplasms: benign tumours and malignant tumours.
Hormonal disorder or nervous breakdown?
Many times, a thyroid disease can be hard to detect. Such symptoms as irritancy, easy crying, sleep disorders, nervousness, changes in appetite and body weigh are usually interpreted as results of tiredness, being overworked, fatigue or depression. All other symptoms we treat as the consequences of nervous exhaustion.
Ordinary sedatives, rest and change of scene have only a temporary effect, and after that the problem still returns with a vengeance. In that case, you should pay special attention to your body and try to sort out what is going on with the help of a doctor.
Feeling sick can be caused by the lack of thyroid gland hormones – hypothyroidism, lack of hormones – thyrotoxicosis, a symptom of neck organs compression caused by enlarged thyroid gland – Derbyshire neck, with a normal amount of hormones in blood (euthyroidism).
Thyroid body: symptoms of hypotheriosis
Overwrought nerves is a thyroid gland pathology, then you may notice some specific changes in your health state. Being ill with hypotheriosis makes your metabolism slow down, causing all internal processes to slow down.
Neuropsychic disorders:
- weakness, performance and memory decrement, drowsiness, lethargy, hypoplasia;
- gloominess, different signs of depression.
General symptoms:
- frequent cold-related diseases;
- slow performance of gastro-intestinal tract, which, first of all, results in constipations;
- increase of body weight with low appetite and absence of pleasure from having meals;
- chillness of hands and feet, reduced body temperature;
- dryness of skin, brittleness of nails, hair loss, hoarseness;
- heterotonia, attacks of vegetative-vascular dystonia, anaemia, intermissions in the heart performance.
When having hypothesis, menstrual cycle changes: menstrual bleedings are rare, menopause starts early. It is hard to get pregnant for women ill with hypotheriosis, very often the lack of thyroid hormones leads to recurrent pregnancy loss.
In one word, hypothyreosis can be described as a complete loss of vital energy.
Before the appearance of methods of treatment, the disease was lethal.
Thyroid body: symptoms of thyrotoxicosis
Having thyrotoxicosis, when there are too much thyroid hormones being produced, on the contrary, metabolism speeds up.
Neuropsychic disorders:
- bad, tumultuous sleep, increased fatigability, inability to concentrate while doing one task, weakness;
- aggressiveness, mood swings, emotionalism, affectability, easy crying.
General symptoms:
- rapid heartbeat, arrhythmia, increase in arterial blood pressure, shortness of breath;
- long period high temperature up to sub fibrillar digits
- hot flashes, feeling hot, generalized hyperhidrosis;
- hand and tongue tremor, swelling area around eyes, goggle eyes;
- frequent defecation and urination, thirst;
- weight loss while having good appetite;
- hair loss;
- lowered libido, menstrual functioning disorder.
The appearance of Derbyshire neck – thickening in the posterior triangle of neck, swelling in view of thyroid gland – may happen in any functional state of the thyroid gland and always requires treatment.
Thyroid body: diagnosis and treatment
Defining hormones TSH, T3 and T4 in blood has a great importance for diagnosis of thyroid gland diseases.
Fluctuations in TSH rate beyond normal limits are signs of pathology even if T3 and T4 rates are on the adequate level – such a state is called asymptomatic, and despite the possible absence of obvious symptoms, needs correction.
For establishing causes of thyroid gland diseases, the level of antibodies for different thyroid cell components is being tested: thyroglobulin, peroxidase thyrocytes, etc.
For accurate measuring dimensions and volume of thyroid glands, finding knots and cysts in it ultrasonic examination is made.
For defining pathologies in thyroid gland structure, studying activity and nature of the knots in the thyroid body method of scintigraphyis used as well as method of colour Doppler mapping, which helps to study the blood flow inside the organ.
If some new formations are found in the gland, they are punctured under the ultrasonic control and provide material for cytologic screening after which the disease treating strategy is chosen.
In case of insufficient functioning of the thyroid gland, (hypothesis) a long term substitutive hormone therapy is prescribed. In case of thyrotoxicosis, on the contrary, medicines, inhibiting thyroid gland functioning, are used.
Apart from traditional therapy, rather often operational treatment is used: removal of the knot or a part of thyroid gland.
