Treatment of<unk>  includes antithyroid drugs that reduce the production of thyroid hormone, radioiodine (radioactive iodine I-131) and thyroidectomy (surgical excision of the gland). As operating on a hyperthyroid patient is dangerous, prior to thyroidectomy, preoperative treatment with antithyroid drugs is given to render the patient euthyroid. Each of these treatments has advantages and disadvantages, and no single treatment approach is considered the best for everyone. Treatment with antithyroid medications must be administered for six months to two years to be effective. Even then, upon cessation of the drugs, the hyperthyroid state may recur. The risk of recurrence is about 40–50%, and lifelong treatment with antithyroid drugs carries some side effects such as agranulocytosis and liver<unk> . Side effects of the antithyroid medications include a potentially fatal reduction in the level of white blood cells. Therapy with radioiodine is the most common treatment in the United States, while antithyroid drugs and/or thyroidectomy are used more often in Europe, Japan, and most of the rest of the world. β-Blockers (such as propranolol) may be used to inhibit the sympathetic nervous system symptoms of tachycardia and nausea until antithyroid treatments start to take effect. Pure β-blockers do not inhibit lid retraction in the eyes, which is mediated by alpha adrenergic receptors. Antithyroid drugs The main antithyroid drugs are carbimazole (in the UK), methimazole (in the US), and propylthiouracil/PTU. These drugs block the binding of iodine and coupling of iodotyrosines. The most dangerous side effect is agranulocytosis (1/250, more in PTU). Others include granulocytopenia (dose-dependent, which improves on cessation of the drug) and aplastic anemia. Patients on these medications should see a doctor if they develop sore throat or fever. The most common side effects are rash and peripheral neuritis. These drugs also cross the placenta and are secreted in breast milk. Lugol's iodine may be used to block hormone synthesis before surgery. A randomized control trial testing single-dose treatment for<unk> ' found methimazole achieved euthyroid state more effectively after 12 weeks than did propylthyouracil (77.1% on methimazole 15 mg vs 19.4% in the propylthiouracil 150 mg groups). No difference in outcome was shown for adding thyroxine to antithyroid medication and continuing thyroxine versus placebo after antithyroid medication withdrawal. However, two markers were found that can help predict the risk of recurrence. These two markers are a positive TSHr antibody (TSHR-Ab) and smoking. A positive TSHR-Ab at the end of antithyroid drug treatment increases the risk of recurrence to 90% (sensitivity 39%, specificity 98%), and a negative TSHR-Ab at the end of antithyroid drug treatment is associated with a 78% chance of remaining in remission. Smoking was shown to have an impact independent to a positive TSHR-Ab. Radioiodine Scan of affected thyroid before (top) and after (bottom) radioiodine therapy Radioiodine (radioactive iodine-131) was developed in the early 1940s at the Mallinckrodt General Clinical Research Center. This modality is suitable for most patients, although some prefer to use it mainly for older patients. Indications for radioiodine are failed medical therapy or surgery and where medical or surgical therapy are contraindicated. Hypothyroidism may be a complication of this therapy, but may be treated with thyroid hormones if it appears. The rationale for radioactive iodine is that it accumulates in the thyroid and irradiates the gland with its beta and gamma radiations, about 90% of the total radiation being emitted by the beta (electron) particles. The most common method of iodine-131 treatment is to administer a specified amount in microcuries per gram of thyroid gland based on palpation or radiodiagnostic imaging of the gland over 24 hours. Patients who receive the therapy must be monitored regularly with thyroid blood tests to ensure they are treated with thyroid hormone before they become symptomatically hypothyroid. Contraindications to RAI are pregnancy (absolute), ophthalmopathy (relative; it can aggravate thyroid eye<unk> , or solitary nodules. Disadvantages of this treatment are a high incidence of hypothyroidism (up to 80%) requiring eventual thyroid hormone supplementation in the form of a daily pill(s). The radioiodine treatment acts slowly (over months to years) to destroy the thyroid gland, and<unk> –associated hyperthyroidism is not cured in all persons by radioiodine, but has a relapse rate that depends on the dose of radioiodine which is administered. In rare cases, radiation induced thyroiditis has been linked to this treatment. Surgery This modality is suitable for young and pregnant people. Indications for thyroidectomy can be separated into absolute indications or relative indications. These indications aid in deciding which people would benefit most from surgery. The absolute indications are a large goiter (especially when compressing the trachea), suspicious nodules or suspected cancer (to pathologically examine the thyroid), and people with ophthalmopathy and additionally if it is the person's preferred method of treatment or if refusing to undergo radioactive iodine treatment. Pregnancy is advised to be delayed for 6 months after radioactive iodine treatment. Both bilateral subtotal thyroidectomy and the Hartley-Dunhill procedure (hemithyroidectomy on one side and partial lobectomy on other side) are possible. Advantages are immediate cure and potential removal of carcinoma. Its risks are injury of the recurrent laryngeal nerve, hypoparathyroidism (due to removal of the parathyroid glands), hematoma (which can be life-threatening if it compresses the trachea), relapse following medical treatment, infections (less common), and scarring. The increase in the risk of nerve injury can be due to the increased vascularity of the thyroid parenchyma and the development of links between the thyroid capsule and the surrounding tissues. Reportedly, a 1% incidence exists of permanent recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis after complete thyroidectomy. Removal of the gland enables complete biopsy to be performed to have definite evidence of cancer anywhere in the thyroid. (Needle biopsies are not so accurate at predicting a benign state of the thyroid). No further treatment of the thyroid is required, unless cancer is detected. Radioiodine uptake study may be done after surgery, to ensure all remaining (potentially cancerous) thyroid cells (i.e., near the nerves to the vocal cords) are destroyed. Besides this, the only remaining treatment will be levothyroxine, or thyroid replacement pills to be taken for the rest of the patient's life. A 2013 review article concludes that surgery appears to be the most successful in the management of<unk> , with total thyroidectomy being the preferred surgical option. Eyes Mild cases are treated with lubricant eye drops or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drops. Severe cases threatening vision (corneal exposure or optic nerve compression) are treated with steroids or orbital decompression. In all cases, cessation of smoking is essential. Double vision can be corrected with prism glasses and surgery (the latter only when the process has been stable for a while). Difficulty closing eyes can be treated with lubricant gel at night, or with tape on the eyes to enable full, deep sleep. Orbital decompression can be performed to enable bulging eyes to retreat back into the head. Bone is removed from the skull behind the eyes, and space is made for the muscles and fatty tissue to fall back into the skull. Eyelid surgery can be performed on upper and/or lower eyelids to reverse the effects of<unk>  on the eyelids. Eyelid muscles can become tight with<unk> , making it impossible to close the eyes all the way. Eyelid surgery involves an incision along the natural crease of the eyelid, and a scraping away of the muscle that holds the eyelid open. This makes the muscle weaker, which allows the eyelid to extend over the eyeball more effectively. Eyelid surgery helps reduce or eliminate dry eye symptoms. For management of clinically active<unk> , orbitopathy (clinical activity score >2) with at least mild to moderate severity, intravenous glucocorticoids are the treatment of choice, usually administered in the form of pulse intravenous methylprednisolone. Studies have consistently shown that pulse intravenous methylprednisolone is superior to oral glucocorticoids both in terms of efficacy and decreased side effects for managing<unk> ' orbitopathy.
Graves' disease
Hashimoto's thyroiditis
Autoimmune thyroiditis
Riedel's thyroiditis
Ord's thyroiditis
Cushing's disease
Radiation-induced thyroiditis
Behr syndrome