What is graves disease and symptoms?
Graves disease is an autoimmune disease. Autoimmune means that the body makes antibodies against its own body cells. At Graves disease makes the body usually antibodies against the thyroid gland. Who goes to work fast and thereby is sometimes too great.
Symptoms of Graves disease can include:
- The thyroid gland works too fast.
- The thyroid gland works too slowly (later stage).
- Graves eye disease.
- Skin Graves disease.
Does your thyroid too fast? You will get a SIP medications, radioactive iodine or surgery. Does the thyroid gland treated, then take any eye problems often wonder. Otherwise, you can get medications against the eye symptoms.
Graves disease is four times as common in women than in men. The first symptoms occur most often between the 25th and the 50th year of life.
What are the symptoms of graves disease?
In Graves disease, you can get the following symptoms:
- By an overactive thyroid gland, you get palpitations and go vibrate. You're very tired, nervous and busy. Your hands are hot and humid. You get diarrhea and falls off while you still eat a lot. Some women have fewer periods.
- Some people get the eye disease Graves. You then have sore, red and watery eyes. Your eyes are wide open and round, your eyelids are swollen. This gives you a staring, angry or frightened facial expression. You are blurred or double vision. You can not move your eyes more. These complaints arise because the eye muscles and fat in the eye sockets and light swell. The eyeballs are pressed outwards. If the eyelids and eye socket quite firm, the eyes stand out not so bad. Yet that is precisely dangerous because then the pressure inside the eye socket. This allows the optic nerve becomes pinched and going to see worse.
- A very small proportion of people with Graves disease develop skin problems. They get bumpy, red patches of skin on the shins. Itchy in the beginning and burn these places sometimes.
The eye disease can alter your appearance. Bulge your eyes? Then you look different, such as upset or surprised. As a result people may react strangely. This can be very annoying. Some people feel ugly. They can lose their confidence and get psychological problems.
How does the doctor determines that you have Graves disease?
If you come with your symptoms to the doctor, they may suspect that you have Graves disease. She will then refer you to a specialist.
A hospital specialist examines the function of your thyroid. You will need to get a blood sample. Of certain substances in the blood can see the specialist if your thyroid is working too fast. Sometimes the specialist still does tests to see how your thyroid looks. You will get for instance a CT scan or ultrasound.
An ophthalmologist examines your eyes with a CT scan or ultrasound. They then see whether the pressure inside the eye socket is too high and if the eye muscle is thickened. They can also see if your eye muscles are inflamed. Sometimes the ophthalmologist makes other investigations. With a visual evoked potential testing can they tell whether the optic nerve is damaged.
Most GPs will not think fast to Graves disease. That's because people with Graves disease that can have many different symptoms. Sometimes the doctor thinks that someone is overwrought or depressed. When a doctor thinks eye symptoms often an allergic reaction. Many people stay with Graves disease therefore long walk around with their complaints.
What is the treatment for graves disease?
If you have an overactive thyroid gland by Graves disease? Then you get medications, a sip of radioactive iodine or surgery.
For mild eye symptoms by Graves disease can receive eye drops or ointment. This prevents your eyes from drying. It is best to also wear sunglasses.
In severe eye problems you will probably be one of the following treatments:
- Irradiation to inhibit the inflammation. This is a different radiation than that in cancer.
- Anti-inflammatory medications (prednisone).
- Prednisone in combination with cyclosporine (a medicine that suppresses the immune system).
- Botulinum injections (Botox). This will ensure that you can close your eyelids.
Even without treatment, the eye disease Graves comes after two to four years to rest. She comes to most people did not return.
Complaints such as bulging eyes, swollen eyelids and double vision will not go away. There are different operations possible. These operations can improve eye problems or remedy.
You have thyroid problems and eye problems? Then your doctor will take into account the treatment with it. By treatment with radioactive iodine because the eye symptoms may get worse. You will receive radioactive iodine then only if the eye disease has come to rest.
By treating the eyes disappear skin complaints on the legs often immediately. If symptoms are very bad, then the physician treats the skin. You will receive anti-inflammatory ointment.
Surgery for Graves disease
Some people with Graves disease have eye surgery. The doctor will do that operation only if the eye disease has come to rest. Only if the pressure on the optic nerve becomes too large, it will operate earlier. Wait too long with surgery will arrange for permanent damage to the optic nerve.
In the operation the doctor makes the eye socket more spacious. Do they by one or more bone walls of the eye socket. Sometimes they also fat away during surgery. The pressure in the eye socket decreases. The eye drops deeper into the eye socket.
Double vision can also remedy the doctor with surgery.
To make the eyes less bulb look like the doctor may prolong the eyelids. Also a thickening of the eyelids can they fix it with surgery. During the surgery the doctor retrieves excess fat away.