The Struma is a collective name for all forms of the enlarged thyroid gland. The thyroid gland sits on the front of the throat and produces a hormone that controls the metabolism. There may be several reasons for the thyroid enlargement. For example, it may be due to a tubercle, iodine deficiency or that the thyroid gland is inflamed.
The Struma means you have an enlarged thyroid, but is not really a name for a disease. It is important to investigate what causes of the trauma you have because the treatment for struma differs for different types. In most cases, trauma is something you can live with without any hassle or treatment.
Different types of currents
The most common type of hemorrhage is tubercle hemorrhage. Tuberculosis can increase the size of the entire thyroid, often with an irregular shape. In rare cases, it may be more difficult to swallow or breathe as usual because the enlarged thyroid gland presses the throat or trachea.
Hormone production mostly works as it should if you have tuberculosis. But sometimes the tuber may have an extra high production of thyroid hormone. When you have too much thyroid hormone in your body it is called hyperthyroidism or toxic tuberculosis.
Stroma may also be due to inflammation of the thyroid gland. Stroma can also occur in hypothyroidism if the thyroid gland produces too little thyroid hormone.
When and where should I seek care?
Contact a health care center if you have an enlarged thyroid gland or if you suspect you have a goiter.
Also seek care if you have previously had a slightly enlarged thyroid gland that has already been examined but is starting to get bigger, or if it is starting to feel more uneven or lumpy.
What can I do for myself?
The only thing you can do to prevent stroma is to eat food with salt containing iodine. This is important because the natural iodine supply in many countries is far too low. It is especially important to use iodine salt during pregnancy and breastfeeding when the need for iodine is higher. You can read on the packaging whether the salt is iodized or not. Gourmet salts of various kinds are rarely fortified with iodine.
Investigations
An investigation is usually done to find out what type of trauma it is and if you need treatment.
When the trauma is investigated, you are given blood samples for the doctor to measure the levels of thyroid hormones T3 and T4 and the regulating hormone TSH. Through the blood test, the doctor can also see if the body’s immune system has formed so-called antibodies to the thyroid gland.
Sometimes a so-called fine needle biopsy is done. This means that the doctor retrieves cells from the thyroid with a thin needle. The sample is then examined under a microscope.
Sometimes an ultrasound examination or computed tomography is done. Then the distribution of the stroma and if the trachea or esophagus are affected.
You have the right to understand
In order for you to be able to participate in your care and make decisions, it is important that you understand the information you receive from the healthcare staff. Ask questions if you don’t understand.
Treatment for struma
The Struma does not need to be treated if it does not cause any problems, if the examination has produced a benign result and if a medical examination has shown that the metabolism is as it should be. If the hormone level is as it should be, you may undergo a flow operation for the following reasons:
- If the strum makes you feel pressure on the neck and for example have a hard time wearing a polo shirt or tie. You may also have difficulty swallowing or difficulty breathing.
- If the doctor suspects that there may be something malignant in the thyroid gland.
If the stroma is only distorting, it does not need to be operated for medical reasons, but an assessment is often made by a surgeon who determines in each case. In the event of a stroke, it is possible to remove all or part of the thyroid gland. If a major portion of the thyroid gland is removed, you are likely to need to bring the thyroid hormone out of life. You then get the drug thyroxine.
What is the reason for the electricity?
What is the reason for the electricity?
Trauma can have different causes:
- During tubercles, tubercles are formed in the thyroid gland.
- Congenital disturbances in the formation of thyroid hormones T3 and T4 can cause currents and too low metabolism in childhood.
- Lack of iodine in the diet.
- Disruptions in growth factors of other kinds.
- Certain substances and drugs can cause currents. This applies, for example, to high doses of lithium, amiodarone and iodide salts.
- You may also get inflammation of the thyroid gland. The most common type of inflammation is called autoimmune thyroiditis or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
- Cysts and tumors can also cause thyroid enlargement, but most tumors are benign and do not mean you have had cancer. Nevertheless, it is important that a doctor examines all cases of a stroke.
Sometimes the cause of the stroma cannot be found.
The Struma can be hereditary
Thyroid diseases are partially hereditary. You are more likely to get the disease yourself if you have thyroid disease in the genus. Within the same genus, for example, the risk of both high and low thyroid hormone production may be increased.
Four out of five who get a stroke are women. The Struma occurs at all ages, but it is a little more common during puberty and pregnancy.
What happens in the body?
The thyroid gland, thyroid, sits on the front of the neck below the larynx. It is three to four inches long and about six to seven inches wide with a narrower portion in the middle. It looks like the letter H. The thyroid gland is soft and difficult to discern when feeling on the neck if it is not enlarged.
The thyroid’s most important task is to control the metabolism of the body. The control takes place through the hormones thyroxine, T4, and triiodothyronine, T3, which are formed in the thyroid gland.
The thyroid function is in turn controlled by the hormone TSH, the thyroid-stimulating hormone, which is formed in the pituitary gland of the brain. In order for the body to be balanced, the hormones must be produced in sufficient quantity. Sometimes the production of thyroid hormone is too low in connection with the stroma, called hypothyroidism. When hormone production is too high in conjunction with currents, it is called hyperthyroidism. If you have a goiter, thyroid hormone production usually works properly.