The thyroid is an endocrine organ that secretes thyroid hormones to maintain the normal functioning of the body. However, women are more likely to develop thyroid diseases, such as:
Aspects of Thyroid Dysfunction
Hyperthyroidism
Hyperthyroidism, the full name of hyperthyroidism, refers to the increased excitability and hypermetabolism of the body’s nervous, circulatory, digestive and other systems due to the synthesis and release of excessive thyroid hormones by the thyroid gland. .
So, what about hyperthyroidism?
1. General treatment
Ensure adequate rest and emotional stability, pay attention to nutritional supplements in the diet, and eat more high-calorie, high-protein foods.
2. Medication
The more commonly used drugs are imidazoles and thiouracils. During the course of treatment, it is necessary to appropriately increase or decrease the dose according to the function of the thyroid.
3. Immunotherapy
This is an emerging treatment method, which can effectively repair the thyroid follicle tissue and restore the secretion function of the thyroid follicle to normal, so as to achieve the purpose of treating hyperthyroidism.
4. Surgery
If hyperthyroidism has caused obvious goiter, or malignant tumor, surgery is usually required.
Hyperthyroidism
Hypothyroidism is the abbreviation of “hypothyroidism”, which refers to the endocrine disease caused by the reduction of thyroid hormone synthesis and secretion due to various reasons, or the systemic metabolic reduction caused by the weakening of tissue function. .
So, what about hypothyroidism?
1. Medication
Hypothyroidism is an incurable chronic disease. Clinically, oral levothyroxine sodium tablets are often used as the treatment plan, but mild hypothyroidism will not affect normal life and work. .
2. Diet therapy
Patients can also maintain protein balance by consuming enough protein each day.
3. Treatment of complications
If it is also accompanied by abnormalities of the digestive system, cardiovascular system, and infection, anti-infective treatment and targeted etiological treatment are required.
4. Surgery
If a patient with hypothyroidism has a huge thyroid tumor, surgery is required to prevent the disease from affecting the patient’s normal life.
thyroid nodules
Thyroid nodules are lumps formed after abnormal proliferation of thyroid cells. It is a very common thyroid disease.
Most cases are not serious, generally benign, and rarely have any symptoms.
The most common way to diagnose a thyroid nodule is an ultrasound. If a woman does B-ultrasound and finds that thyroid nodules do exist after pregnancy, it is necessary to draw blood to check thyroid function.
The doctor will determine whether malignancy is suspected and whether a needle biopsy is needed based on the results of the ultrasound and blood test.
So what if you have a thyroid nodule?
The detection rate of thyroid nodules is high, about 85% to 95% of which are benign, and most do not require treatment. But if a woman happens to be pregnant, it needs to be distinguished in time and dealt with:
Benign thyroid nodule with normal thyroid function
If the mother does not have any symptoms on a daily basis, she does not need special care, and generally does notIf it has any effect on the baby, it only needs to be checked regularly according to the doctor’s advice.
Benign thyroid nodule with abnormal thyroid function
In this case, pregnant mothers may experience corresponding discomfort symptoms due to “hyperthyroidism” or “hypothyroidism”.
If the pregnant mother did not have hyperthyroidism before pregnancy, but had hyperthyroidism in the early stage of pregnancy, especially at 8-10 weeks, and the thyroid autoantibodies were negative, then most All are hyperthyroidism during pregnancy.
This usually recovers slowly as pregnancy progresses, does not require special treatment, and generally does not affect the fetus.
Malignant/suspected thyroid nodules
If the pregnant mother can clearly feel a sore throat, foreign body sensation, difficulty swallowing, shortness of breath and other symptoms, or touch an abnormal neck mass, she must seek medical attention in time. It is up to the doctor to help judge further treatment options.
If the nodule found in the first 3 months of pregnancy is stable until the second trimester, with no significant change in size, or if it is discovered after the 5th month of pregnancy, and the symptoms are not obvious , then generally do not need surgery during pregnancy, wait until delivery before considering surgery.
When thyroid surgery is performed during pregnancy, it is generally recommended to perform thyroid surgery at 4 to 6 months of pregnancy. At this time, the impact on the fetus and mother is minimal, and most of them are safe.
thyroiditis
In general, women are more likely to develop thyroiditis during the following two periods: within one year of giving birth and after a spontaneous or induced abortion.
Currently, the average incidence of postpartum thyroiditis is 7% to 8%.
So what should I do if I have postpartum thyroiditis?
Most mothers with postpartum thyroiditis have no or only mild symptoms and usually do not need treatment. Thyroid function usually returns to normal within 1 year after delivery.
However, if the mother has the following two special conditions, she needs to go to the hospital for endocrinology or gynecology in time.
Have characteristic disease course, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism and other symptoms
If a mother has a characteristic course of disease or symptoms of hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism, she needs to seek medical attention in time and go to the hospital to check thyroid function.
Mothers at higher risk for postpartum thyroiditis
For example, if the mother’s anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody is positive, or she has type 1 diabetes, or has experience of postpartum thyroiditis, she needs to go to the hospital for screening for postpartum thyroiditis as soon as possible.