Write An Essay On Hashimoto's Disease

Hashimoto’s disease also called as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, or chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease. Moreover it was the first recognized autoimmune disease and was first described by Hakaru Hashimoto in a paper published in Germany in 1912. An autoimmune disease is one which arises due to an abnormal response of the immune system against cells and tissues of the same body. In Hashimoto’s disease the thyroid gland is attacked by many cells of the immune system, which leads to primary hypothyroidism.

SYMPTOMS:
• The symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease are fatigue, muscle and joint pain, weight gain, pale and puffy face, inability to get warm, constipation, dry hair, depression, slower heart rate.
• In girls the symptoms include,
heavy menstrual flow and irregular periods, problems getting pregnant and maintaining pregnancy.
Girls have more probability of getting this disease than boys.
Nearly seven times greater chances. It can occur in teens and young women, and commonly in middle age for men. People with this disease mostly have family members having thyroid or other autoimmune diseases.
Hashimoto’s disease is generally accompanied by other autoimmune diseases too. Here the thyroid gland becomes firm, large and lobulated (an appearance resembling lobules). The enlargement of the thyroid gland is usually due to lymphocytic infiltration, it may also be due to the invasion of the thyroid gland by the leukocytes, mainly the T-lymphocytes.
It’s important to note that in patients who have this disease, iodine deficiency can still pose a real concern to healthy functioning of the thyroid gland.
The world health organization says that the maximum tolerable intake for iodine is 1100mcg per day for pregnant women.
DIAGNOSIS:
• Hashimoto’s disease is diagnosed by detecting the elevated levels of anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies in the serum.
• Testing for thyroid stimulating hormone, free T3, free T4, can give accurate results.
• Inflammation within the thyroid that causes damage to the integrity of thyroid follicle storage of thyroglobulin is also used to diagnose this autoimmune
disease.

PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE! But unfortunately there is no prevention for Hashimoto’s disease; all we can do is treat the disease before it gets worse. It is usually treated by suppressing the immune system to certain extent. This disease is not preventable because it’s still not understood why the immune system attacks them instead of protecting them.
Normal hormone changes during pregnancy causes changes in hormone level. The thyroid may enlarge slightly in healthy women during pregnancy but not so obvious to be felt. These changes does not affect the pregnancy or the unborn baby.
Thyroid hormone is vital during pregnancy. Thyroid hormone is essential for the development of the unborn baby’s brain and nervous system. At 10-12 weeks of pregnancy the baby’s thyroid begins to work on its own. But the baby still depends on the mother for iodine to make thyroid hormone.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF HASHIMOTO’S DISEASE IS LEFT UNTREATED???
Untreated thyroid may lead to
• Infertility
• Miscarriage
• Giving birth to babies with some birth defects
• High cholesterol
• Heart failure
• Coma
• Death