Thyroidectomy
What doctors do not tell you about thyroidectomy is that once they remove your thyroid you now have a life threatening condition. You will need to wear a medical alert bracket. You cannot live without thyroid hormones!
There are very few reasons to have a thyroidectomy and this should only be done as a very last resort.
There are very few reasons to have a thyroidectomy and this should only be done as a very last resort.
These conditions are NOT a reason to have your thyroid removed
Goiter
Thyroid nodules
Hashimoto’s
Any kind of Hypothyroidism
Thyroidectomy may only be necessary in thyroid cancer and Graves’, but again only after all other treatment options have been tried.
Thyroid nodules
Hashimoto’s
Any kind of Hypothyroidism
Thyroidectomy may only be necessary in thyroid cancer and Graves’, but again only after all other treatment options have been tried.
Surgery-related complications, including:
Scarring of the neck
Hoarseness due to nerve damage to the voice box
Low calcium level due to damage to the parathyroid glands (located behind the thyroid gland)
Myxedema psychosis, more colloquially known as myxedema madness, is a relatively uncommon consequence of hypothyroidism, such as in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or in patients who have had the thyroids surgically removed and are not taking Desiccated Thyroid Hormones. The “myxedema” part of the name simply refers to the non-pitting edema common to hypothyroidism
A chronically under-active thyroid can lead to slowly progressive dementia, delirium, and in extreme cases to hallucinations, coma, or psychosis, particularly in the elderly.
Thyroid hormone replacement therapy with desiccated thyroid in these patients usually reverses the psychotic symptoms, but may not help with cognitive deficits caused by changes in metabolic activity in the Central Nervous System (CNS).
Hoarseness due to nerve damage to the voice box
Low calcium level due to damage to the parathyroid glands (located behind the thyroid gland)
Myxedema psychosis, more colloquially known as myxedema madness, is a relatively uncommon consequence of hypothyroidism, such as in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or in patients who have had the thyroids surgically removed and are not taking Desiccated Thyroid Hormones. The “myxedema” part of the name simply refers to the non-pitting edema common to hypothyroidism
A chronically under-active thyroid can lead to slowly progressive dementia, delirium, and in extreme cases to hallucinations, coma, or psychosis, particularly in the elderly.
Thyroid hormone replacement therapy with desiccated thyroid in these patients usually reverses the psychotic symptoms, but may not help with cognitive deficits caused by changes in metabolic activity in the Central Nervous System (CNS).