Essay On Graves Disease

Graves Disease Graves Disease is a type of immune system disorder where the thyroid is overactive and produces too many hormones, which is then called hyperthyroidism. An underactive thyroid leads to hypothyroidism. Many other disorders can cause Graves Disease but this one in particular is more common. The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped endocrine gland that is normally located in the lower front of the neck. The thyroids job is to make thyroid hormones, which are secreted into the blood and then carried to every tissue in the body (American Thyroid Association). Graves’ Disease is a type of thyroid condition that results from abnormal stimulation of the thyroid gland by a material in the blood referred to as thyroid stimulating immunoglobins

Sometimes the patient will be advised to have a radioactive iodine uptake tests or scan of the thyroid to see whether the entire thyroid gland is overactive. Clues that your hyperthyroidism is caused by Graves Disease are the presence of Graves’s eye disease, an enlarged thyroid and a history of other family members with thyroid or autoimmune problems. Some relatives may have had hyperthyroidism or an underactive thyroid; others may have other autoimmune diseases including premature graying of the hair, beginning in there 20s (ATS). Treatment is aimed at controlling the patient’s overactive thyroid. Medicines called beta-blockers are often used to treat symptoms of rapid heart rate, sweating, and anxiety until the hyperthyroidism is controlled. Hyperthyroidism is treated with one or more of the following: anti-thyroid medications, radioactive iodine, or surgery. If the patient has had the radioactive iodine treatment or surgery, the patient will need to take replacement thyroid hormones for the rest their life. This is because these treatments will destroy or remove the gland