Thyroid disease is increasingly diagnosed in people in modern society. The reason for this is a number of reasons - and a bad ecological situation, and poor nutrition and unhealthy lifestyle.
Diffusive enlargement of the thyroid gland is a change in the size of the organ evenly in all directions.
In the normal state, the thyroid gland is soft and difficult to detect when probed. However, with a small increase, this also will not be very noticeable. An accurate diagnosis can be made only by doctors after the examination.
Causes of
Such a disease, as a change in the size of the thyroid gland in the larger direction, also has its causes. These include:
- Poor environmental conditions.
- Harmful habits - smoking, alcohol and substance abuse.
- Incorrect power.
- Change in the level of hormones. And most often for this reason, there are diseases in women.
- Constant stress, nervous shocks.
- Lack of iodine in the body.
These are the main reasons. However, each person is individual, so the exact causes of the disease will be determined only by a specialist.
Symptoms of
There are signs for each disease. The breeze is also no exception. The main symptoms are:
- Changing the size of the thyroid gland. It becomes bigger and denser. In the early stages it is not so noticeable. Most often it is found on examination with doctors. A specialist can determine the change in palpation.
- In the analyzes, a change in the amount of thyroxin and triiodothyronine produced can be detected.
However, in addition, with problems in the thyroid gland, there are problems in the whole body. Therefore, you can observe other signs. Here they are:
- There are abnormalities in the work of the nervous system. The person is constantly in a depressed state. Often, such a disease is characterized by nervousness and irritation, insomnia.
- Increases fatigue, a person is constantly listless, he does not want anything.
- Memory, attention. This is especially noticeable in children, it becomes difficult for them to learn and remember information.
- The person is disturbed by heat exchange, he is constantly cold.
- Problems in the work of the gland lead to the fact that human immunity is reduced, as a result, people often suffer from infectious diseases.
- In diseases of this organ, the cardiovascular system primarily suffers. The pulse becomes very frequent, constant pressure jumps occur. In this case, a person can be seen with dilated blood vessels on his hands, often there are any skin diseases.
- In addition, the activity of the gastrointestinal tract is disrupted, which can be accompanied by permanent constipation or, conversely, diarrhea.
- For diseases of the thyroid gland, there is also a sign such as trembling in the hands. Often this phenomenon is characteristic of diffuse goiter. It is difficult for a patient to hold a handle and sometimes even fasten buttons.
- Because of the disease, calcium metabolism can be disrupted, resulting in problems with bones and teeth.
- Hair and nails are affected. The first begin to fall strongly, for the second is characterized by excessive fragility and brittleness.
- Hormonal failures during the disease lead to a disruption of reproductive function. Very often it is fraught with infertility, sexual desire decreases.
- Tenderness in the muscles is also characteristic for the bump.
- In addition, the hyperactivity of children can also talk about any irregularities in the activities of this important body.
Symptoms are enough, but if you find any of them you do not need to panic. An accurate diagnosis can be made only by a specialist and only after certain tests.
Degrees
Doctors divide the diffuse enlargement of the thyroid gland into several stages. Here they are:
- Zero degree. The body is in the normal state. Its dimensions are not changed, and it is not probed at examination.
- First degree. It is characterized by a small increase, which is detected by probing, when a person does a swallowing movement. He does not particularly show himself. A person does not experience painful sensations. Doctors usually prescribe a blood test for hormones, according to which this condition is determined. Also used and ultrasound. At this stage, drug treatment is used, mainly drugs that contain iodine. In addition, experts advise to follow a certain diet.
- The second degree of is characterized by a change in the size of the gland in the larger direction. This can already be determined visually. In addition, with palpation, the lobe of the organ is easily determined. But the neck is not deformed yet. This degree of disease is typical for such diseases as nodular goiter, oncological diseases, diffuse-toxic goiter.
- With , the third degree of disease, enlarged in the proportion of thyroid gland, is already determined visually. The neck can change its shape. And when probing, you can determine how thick they are. Often at this stage of the disease, benign or malignant neoplasms are identified. Most often, medication is used.
- Fourth degree. This stage is the penultimate one. With it, a change in the contours of the neck, an increase in its size, and the lobe of the gland can be asymmetric in the person with the naked eye. When the doctor probes, painful sensations arise. In addition, for a person at this stage there is a cough, there may be a sensation of a lump in the throat.
- On the last of the fifth stage of , the size of the thyroid gland is several times higher than normal. At a palpation there are sharp morbid sensations.
Treatment of
Treatment of diffuse enlargement of the thyroid gland depends on the stage at which the disease occurs. In addition, it is necessary to consider in what direction the hormonal background could shift.
If hypothyroidism occurs, the doctor will prescribe medications that contain the hormone T4.In hyperthyroidism, on the contrary, medicines are used that inhibit the production of hormones. If the cause of an increase in thyroid gland is not a hormonal malfunction, doctors often leave such a condition simply under supervision. At the same time, the change in its size is monitored and the hormone level is monitored.
If the medication fails to produce results, then surgical intervention is used. In addition, the operation is used for a large size of the thyroid gland and in cases when there are nodal neoplasms, the size of which is more than one centimeter.
If the medication does not help for two years, then most likely the doctor will also prescribe an operation.
Consequences of
Often people have a natural question about how dangerous thyroid enlargement is. Any disease, if left untreated, can lead to negative consequences. This applies to the BRAIN.For example:
- For the most part, changing the size of the thyroid is the result of a violation of the hormonal level. And this is fraught with the development of many other diseases, violation of attention, memory, the emergence of fatigue, an increase in the amount of cholesterol in the body.
- If time does not pay attention to the development of the disease, then it will only progress. And as a result, it will reach an irreversible level. As a result, a person will have to take hormonal drugs for the rest of his life.
- If the disease is caused by a high content of hormones, then this also poses a great danger to a person. The fact is that with this development of the disease, first of all, the heart and blood vessels of a person suffer.
- In addition, enlarged iron has a negative effect on neighboring organs. A person may lose his voice, he may have problems with his voice and eating.
Prevention of
To avoid diffuse enlargement of the thyroid gland, several simple rules must be observed:
- Proper nutrition. Often, thyroid disease develops as a result of a shortage of iodine. Therefore, it is worth adding to your diet more products containing this element. But from meat products, smoked products, salinity, on the contrary, it is worth noting. At least for the period of treatment.
- It is necessary to get rid of bad habits, more is in the open air, avoiding nervous shocks.
- If the cause of problems with the gland is a bad ecological situation, then you need to think about changing the place of residence, because this determines the further life.
Thyroid enlargement can be cured if it is detected in time. Do not panic immediately if the expert makes such a diagnosis.
Of course, you should not self-medicate, it is unlikely that it will give good results. It is best to follow all the recommendations prescribed by your doctor. In addition, if you find any symptoms, you need to contact a specialist. It is easier to cure the disease at an initial stage than in a neglected state.
