In developing countries today, hypothyroidism has become one of the most common yet most under-diagnosed medical conditions. Hypothyroidism is an endocrine abnormality in which the thyroid gland secretes inadequate thyroid hormones, resulting in various health risks and disorders. The deficient activity of the thyroid gland leads to the underproduction of thyroid hormones, which are essential in regulating the body's metabolic processes. In effect, an individual who suffers from hypothyroidism, referred to as a hypothyroid, has an abnormally slow metabolism. The patient's slow metabolic rate can bring about health disorders ranging from mild complaints to fatal complications. The subtle and mild symptoms associated with hypothyroidism include drowsiness, difficulty in tolerating cool temperatures, physical exhaustion, weight gain despite loss of appetite, dry hair and pale skin, and stiffness of joints and muscular cramps. Life-threatening complications may also develop such as mental sluggishness and memory loss, visual disturbances that may lead to blindness, chronic depression, insanity, coma and, eventually, death, if the patient fails to be cured or diagnosed. The inability of the thyroid gland to produce sufficient thyroid hormones namely, thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) can be attributed to a number of causes. One major reason for the occurrence of hypothyroidism is the absence of the thyroid gland due to surgery. If a person has had his thyroid gland surgically removed because of a previous endocrine disorder and has started to rely on prescribed thyroid hormone replacement, he or she is likely to experience hypothyroidism. Another reported cause is the patient having been treated with therapeutic doses of radioactive iodine due to hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism may also be attributed to the impaired activities of the pituitary gland resulting in low secretion of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and, consequently, decreased production of thyroxine (T4). Essentially, hypothyroidism is diagnosed by either blood tests or physical examination and review of a patient's medical history. The most recent accessory to diagnosis the disorder is blood testing that involves measurement of T4 and TSH in the blood. Some thyroid specialists, however, prefer a physical examination, a thorough review of the medical history and a measurement of basal body temperature as diagnostic tests. |
