Subacute Thyroiditis

[eek]

Having recently recovered from a nasty viral infection, I noticed swelling of my thyroid gland.

After having tests I have been diagnosed with Subacute Thyroiditis, and put on a cocktail of tablets: Propanolol hcl 10mg, Propylthiouracil, and Prednisolone 5mg

I have also been advised to stay away from all iodine rich foods, and that its long term maintanance to keep the gland in check.

I have never had this ailment and although i am looking into it, i wonder if anyone has had this problem before and can offer advice.

I am vegitarian, so seafood isnt a problem, but if i am right i should stay away from salty foods.

Really wish to get rid of the swelling and tenderness asap!

Tnx.

[eek]

im bumping this im afraid, because after a couple of weeks post medicine my gland is flaring up again. My throat is tight and a bit tender. Swallowing is uncomfortable, grrz!

Does anyone have experience of this and any suggestions of preferably natural remedies?

Im not sure what triggered this flare up as I have been careful with my diet. The only thing different I can think of is that i had a rather strong coffee, but I thought was only foods that have high iodine content that would be an issue.

Advice gratefully received.

[expatwannabe]

seaweed is very high in iodine

to fight the infection, take zinc and vitamin c every day

iodine is an additive to salt in the U.S. but it's not necessarily in every brand of table salt; just check the label

[eek]

Ty. Id given up on receiving any advice. Was wondering why noone had heard of it/ could offer advice, and beginning to feel freakish

i take vit c but ill get some zinc.

[expatwannabe]

Actually I hadn't ever heard of acute thyroidisis before your post. But the zinc/vit C combo is very effective for almost any infection, assuming that's the problem.

If you have problems with your thyroid, though, it could be that you need more iodine, not less.

So maybe the doctor had it wrong? After all, millions of Asians eat seaweed every day and don't develop a thyroid problem because of it.

Just thinking out loud..

[eek]

Apparently its very common following a bad viral infection, or so ive been told.

Had a series of bloodtests and an ultrasound xray at CM Ram Hospital.

The gland becomes infected due to the lowered immune system and its hard to get it back on track again once triggered. Basically excess thyroid hormone is released causing rapid heartbeat, hot flushes, weight loss, shakes, fever, joint aches and dizzyness. Anything with iodine triggers the thyroid gland to produce more hormones so I need to be cautious with foods containing salt.

Pain in the neck really, literally!

[expatwannabe]

Good to know! I do really think the zinc will help. Good luck!

[Sheryl]

Subacute thyroiditis is not all th uncomon, usually happens after a cold or flu.

Most cases recover completely but it usually takes 2-3months. Initially there is hypethyroidism but later on hypothyroidism often develops at which point it will be imortant to stop the propylthiouracil and prolanolol and you may need to take thyroid supplements.In a minority of cases permanent hypothyroidism results,

Becuse the thyroid function varies greatly during the courseof the disease, from hyper to hypo, nd the drugs which treat one state are dangerous to the other, closemedical follow-up with frequent blood tests of thyroid function are advisable.

[eek]

Oh heck. Guess i should go back for that checkup then.

Tnx guys.

[eek]

Update: 4 months since i posted this and still have problems. If anyone can offer advice I would be most grateful. Ty.

Sheryl..you were right. For at least the last 3 months my medication changed to medication for hypothyroidism. ..and im fed up

I have constant pain in my throat from a slightly swollen thyroid gland. Other symptoms include fever, dizziness, palpitations, confusion, trouble sleeping but yet have fatigue, eye pain etc. I was also around 112 pounds and ran regularly before the diagnosis, but have since put on a quite bit of weight and my energy levels for running are not the same anymore. To be honest im getting really very depressed about it all.

Im being treated at CM Ram and the doctor i spoke to last week told me that the cause and treatment for Thyroid problems is not easy to work out. He suspects could be Graves Disease, but says only time will tell.

Thing is..im wondering if anyone has experienced this and/or knows of a another specialist i can speak to in CM. Heck, i will even go to Bangkok if necessary.

I hope to travel around s.e.asia in a couple of months for a few weeks and wish to try get this problem under control.

At the moment i just feel in limbo getting blood tests and various drug cocktails, with (even with google researching) little understanding of what it is all doing to my body. Not to mention how much its all costing me because of course the silly moose that i am i didnt get round to sorting out private health insurance.

I appreciate ANY advice people can offer in this!!

Thank you.

[Condor123]

Hello eek,

Although its a very long time since you last posted here, i was wondering how your situation moved on. I hope everything worked out in the end. I am now with the same condition and any feedback would be greatly appreciated.