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The thyroid doctor helps when there are problems with this gland. Patients first sign up for an endocrinologist who deals with the endocrine system. A thyroidologist specializes in diseases related to the thyroid gland, such as nodules and goitre. What tests may be recommended for thyroid problems?
Thyroid doctor – who to visit?
Patients whose thyroid hormone tests are abnormal are referred to an endocrinologist. Endocrinology is a specialty that deals with the endocrine system, which is a series of glands that produce hormones. Hormones enter the bloodstream and direct the processes in the body. A very important place here is the thyroid with parathyroid glands, the cerebral hypothalamus, thymus, adrenal glands as well as the ovaries and testes that secrete sex hormones. About 20% of people suffer from thyroid disease, women 9 times more often than men. Thyroid disorders are dealt with in a separate field of thyroid medicine. There is a separate specialization in pediatric thyreology.
Thyroid disorders and the choice of a doctor
Thyreology deals with diseases of the thyroid glands: nodules on the thyroid gland, goiter, thyroid neoplasms, Hashimoto’s disease, Graves’ disease. These diseases are associated with hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. It is worth visiting a thyroid doctor when symptoms suggesting hypothyroidism appear: weight gain with decreased appetite, decreased metabolism, hair loss, dry skin on the elbows and knees, drowsiness, fatigue, depression, irregular menstruation, facial swelling, arrhythmia heart, hypercholesterolaemia. Symptoms of hyperthyroidism are: increased appetite and weight loss, excessive sweating, frequent feeling of cold, arrhythmia, itching of the skin, irregular periods, irritability, aggression.
Thyroid doctor – what tests does he order?
The diagnosis of thyroid diseases is based on a physical examination and determination of the level of thyroid hormones in the blood serum: TSH, T3, T4. It is also worth determining the level of anti-TPO or anti-TG anti-thyroid antibodies, which will reveal autoimmune diseases of the thyroid gland. The thyroid imaging test is an ultrasound of the thyroid gland, where you can see small nodules, they are usually benign, but if you see them on this scan, you will need a fine needle biopsy. For patients who have goiter, the recommended test is a thyroid scintigraphy, a test that allows you to see a complete picture of the thyroid gland, its size and condition. This examination confirms or excludes the existence of a retrosternal, nodular or developmental goiter. Thyroidectomy is the removal of the thyroid gland, a procedure performed in the case of neoplastic changes and due to the large goiter of the thyroid gland.
Thyroid clinics are usually found only in large cities. Perhaps for this reason, most thyroidologists diagnose already advanced stages of thyroid disease. GPs attribute the first signs of thyroid problems to other diseases. The abnormal functioning of the thyroid gland is not very characteristic.