Thyroid Disorders and Surgeries

The thyroid gland is one of the most vital endocrine glands in the body. It secretes hormones that regulate certain functions of the body including metabolism. What’s a thyroid disorder? Millions of Americans are affected by diseases involving the thyroid gland. The most common issues of the thyroid include:

Hyperthyroidism (an overactive thyroid)
Hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid)
Enlargement of the thyroid as a result of hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism

How are thyroid problems treated? Treatment for issues involving the thyroid gland would depend on several factors, including the type of thyroid issue one has and one’s general health condition.

Hyperthyroidism

Generally, for hyperthyroidism medication (for blocking the excessive production of the thyroid hormone), radioactive iodine, or surgery is recommended.

Hypothyroidism

In most cases, thyroid hormone replacement pills are suggested for patients with an underactive thyroid.

Goiters or lumps

To give the doctor more information on the lump, a fine needle aspiration biopsy is done. If the lump turns out to be malignant or if the enlargement causes compression of the esophagus or windpipe, surgery may be recommended. What is thyroid surgery? The extent of your thyroid surgery should be discussed between you and your surgeon. Removal of the thyroid or thyroidectomy can be classified as partial or complete (removal of all or most of the thyroid tissue). Partial thyroidectomy can be classified as:

Open thyroid biopsy It’s a rarely done procedure on which the nodule is excised directly.
Hemi-thyroidectomy It’s a procedure in which one lobe or one half of the thyroid is removed.
Isthmusectomy Usually done for small tumors found in the isthmus, isthmusectomy involves the removal of the bridge of the thyroid tissue between the two lobes.

The extent of the thyroid surgery would depend on several factors including the reason for the surgery and the severity of the thyroid disease. Greater Knoxville ENT has specialists who can evaluate and treat thyroid conditions. To request an appointment, you can call us at (865) 244-4396. Reference: https://med.uth.edu/orl/2010/06/30/thyroid-disorders-surgery-2/ https://www.thyroid.org/thyroid-surgery/

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