When your thyroid gland produces an excessive or insufficient amount of hormones, you can experience problems with your weight, energy, and other issues. At Priority Health MD in Cooper City, Florida, internal medicine physician Roberto Fernandez-Blay, MD, offers personalized thyroid treatment to help you manage symptoms effectively. Call the office or schedule an appointment online today to learn more about his approach to thyroid problems.
What is thyroid treatment?
Thyroid treatment is medical care for people who over- or under-producing thyroid hormones. Because your thyroid hormones regulate your metabolism and several bodily functions, an issue with these hormones can lead to serious and disruptive symptoms that require prompt care.
What problems might require thyroid treatment?
There are two main types of thyroid disease, and both require treatment. These include:
Hyperthyroidism
Hyperthyroidism occurs when your thyroid gland overproduces hormones. This causes you to use energy too fast, leading to problems like unintended weight loss, insomnia, nervousness, and heat intolerance.
Conditions that may cause hyperthyroidism include Graves’ disease, thyroid nodules, thyroiditis, and high levels of iodine in your body.
Hyperthyroidism
If you have hypothyroidism, your thyroid gland produces too few hormones. This leads to problems like weight gain, fatigue, forgetfulness, and cold intolerance.
Conditions that may cause hypothyroidism include chronic inflammation (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis), iodine deficiency, and congenital disease.
Some people go from hyperthyroidism to hypothyroidism. For example, if medical treatment for hyperthyroidism excessively lowers your thyroid hormone levels, you could develop hypothyroidism.
How is thyroid disorder diagnosed?
The first step in thyroid treatment is diagnosis of the specific issue. This usually includes a comprehensive review of your symptoms along with blood tests to check the levels of all your thyroid hormones, including thyroid-stimulating hormones (TSH), thyroxine (T4), free thyroxine (FT4), triiodothyronine (T3), and free triiodothyronine (FT3).
You might need additional tests to check thyroid antibodies, calcitonin, and thyroglobulin, and could need an ultrasound scan to check for nodules or other structural issues in your thyroid gland.
After determining your specific thyroid disorder and its severity, your provider at Priority Health MD develops a personalized treatment plan.
How does thyroid treatment work?
With hypothyroidism, the standard medical approach is daily oral medication to restore your thyroid hormone levels. However, with hyperthyroidism, you may need antithyroid medications and surgical thyroid removal.
Priority Health MD focuses on healing from the inside. They use integrative approaches to target your underlying thyroid issues. Your provider may recommend diet changes, gut healing, natural supplements, and optimizing your whole-body health. These approaches can help restore balanced hormones without causing side effects.
To find a solution to your thyroid disease and improve your bodywide wellness for true symptom relief, call Priority Health MD or schedule an appointment online today.
