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Thyroid Treatment and Surgery In Novi, Michigan

Thyroid Treatment in Novi, MI

Paving a Path Toward Relief

Your thyroid gland is one of the endocrine glands that makes hormones to regulate physiological functions in your body, like metabolism. Other endocrine glands are the pancreas, the pituitary, the adrenal glands, and the parathyroid glands. At ENT Specialists in Novi, Brighton, and Bingham Farms, MI, we are committed to helping all of our patients who suffer from thyroid problems with comprehensive treatment regimens. Our thyroid specialists are trained in the diagnosis and treatment of a wide variety of thyroid and parathyroid conditions. Schedule your consultation for Thyroid Treatment in Novi today!

What is a thyroid disorder?

Fighting An Imbalance

The thyroid gland is located in the middle of the lower neck, below the larynx (voice box), and wraps around the front half of the trachea (windpipe). It is shaped like a bow tie, just above the collarbones, having two halves (lobes) which are joined by a small tissue bar (isthmus.). You can’t always feel a normal thyroid gland. Diseases of the thyroid gland are very common, affecting millions of Americans. The most common thyroid problems are:

  • an overactive gland, called hyperthyroidism (e.g., Graves’ disease, toxic adenoma, or toxic nodular goiter)
  • an underactive gland, called hypothyroidism (e.g., Hashimoto’s thyroiditis)
  • thyroid enlargement due to overactivity (as in Graves’ disease) or from under-activity (as in hypothyroidism). An enlarged thyroid gland is often called a “goiter”.

Patients with a family history or who had radiation therapy to the head or neck as children for acne, adenoids, or other reasons are more prone to develop thyroid malignancy. If you develop significant swelling in your neck or difficulty breathing or swallowing, you should call your surgeon or be seen in the emergency room.

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What are the benefits of thyroid treatment and surgery?

Optimizing Thyroid Function

Thyroid Treatment and Surgery can be very effective, and you should start feeling better within a few weeks or even a few days. This is true regardless of whether you are suffering from a thyroid deficiency, low thyroid, or your thyroid glands are overactive (hyperthyroidism) and producing too much hormone. If you suffer from any of these conditions, our Novi Thyroid Treatments can help. In the eyes of many female patients and medical professionals, the potential advantages of thyroid therapy significantly exceed any potential adverse effects.

Your symptoms should start to improve across the board, beginning with an improvement in energy levels and continuing with a more stable weight. As a result of treatment for low thyroid or any other hormone replacement therapy, you may experience an increase in sexual desire, improved sleep, relief from discomfort in your muscles and joints, and an improvement in your mood.

Am I a good candidate for thyroid treatment and surgery?

You Deserve the Best Treatment

How is a diagnosis made? The diagnosis of a thyroid function abnormality or a thyroid mass is made by taking a medical history and a physical examination. Specifically, your doctor will examine your neck and ask you to lift up your chin to make your thyroid gland more prominent. You may be asked to swallow during the examination, which helps to feel the thyroid and any mass in it. Other tests your doctor may order include:

  • evaluation of the larynx/vocal cords with a mirror or a fiberoptic telescope
  • an ultrasound examination of your neck and thyroid
  • blood tests of thyroid function
  • a radioactive thyroid scan
  • a fine needle aspiration biopsy
  • a chest X-ray
  • a CT or MRI scan

Your Thyroid Treatments

Insight into complications and treatment

What treatment may be recommended? Depending on the nature of your condition, Thyroid Treatment may include the following:

Treatment for Hypothyroidism:

  • thyroid hormone replacement pills
  • medication to reduce thyroid hormone production
  • radioactive iodine to destroy the thyroid gland
  • surgical removal of the thyroid gland

Goiters (lumps):

If you experience this condition, your doctor will propose a treatment plan based on the examination and your test results. He may recommend a fine needle aspiration biopsy—a safe, relatively painless Thyroid Treatment procedure. With this procedure, a hypodermic needle is passed into the lump, often after the administration of local anesthesia into the skin, and tissue fluid samples containing cells are taken. Often several passes with the needle are required.

Additional Reading

Sometimes ultrasound may be used to guide the needle into the nodule. There is little pain afterward, and very few complications from the procedure occur. This test gives the doctor more information on the nature of the lump in your thyroid gland and specifically may help to differentiate a benign from a malignant thyroid mass.

thyroid surgery—may be required when:

  • the fine needle aspiration is reported as suspicious for or suggestive of cancer
  • the trachea (windpipe) or esophagus are compressed because both lobes are very large

Historically, some malignant thyroid nodules have shown a reduction in size with the administration of thyroid hormone. However, this treatment, known as medical “suppression” therapy, has proven to be an unreliable treatment method.

What is thyroid surgery?

Boosting Your Metabolism

Thyroid surgery is an operation to remove part or all of the thyroid gland. It is performed in the hospital, and general anesthesia is usually required. Typically the operation removes the lobe of the thyroid gland containing the lump and possibly the isthmus. A frozen section (an immediate microscopic reading) may or may not be used to determine if the rest of the thyroid gland should be removed. Sometimes, based on the result of the frozen section, the surgeon may decide not to remove any additional thyroid tissue or proceed to remove the entire thyroid gland and/or other tissue in the neck. This is a decision usually made in the operating room by the surgeon based on findings at the time of surgery. Your surgeon will discuss these Thyroid Treatment options with you preoperatively.

Additional Reading

There may be times when the definite microscopic answer cannot be determined until several days after surgery. If a malignancy is identified in this way, your surgeon may recommend that the remaining lobe of the thyroid be removed at a second procedure. If you have specific questions about thyroid surgery, ask your otolaryngologist, and he or she will answer them in detail.

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Thyroid Treatment and Surgery Recovery

Achieve Optimal Hormone Balance

During the first 24 hours:

What happens after thyroid surgery? After surgery, you may have a drain (a tiny piece of plastic tubing), which prevents fluid and blood from building up in the wound. This is removed after the fluid accumulation has stabilized, usually within 24 hours after surgery. Most patients are discharged later the same day or the day following the procedure. After surgery for Thyroid Treatment Novi patients sometimes have complications, but they are rare and may include:

  • bleeding
  • a hoarse voice
  • difficulty swallowing
  • numbness of the skin on the neck
  • vocal cord paralysis
  • low blood calcium

At home:

Following the procedure, if it is determined that you need to take any medication, your surgeon will discuss this with you, prior to your discharge. Medications may include

  • thyroid hormone replacement
  • calcium and/or vitamin D replacement

Some symptoms may not become evident for two or three days after surgery. If you experience any of the following, call your surgeon:

  • numbness and tingling around the lips and hands
  • increasing pain
  • fever
  • swelling
  • wound discharge

Additional Reading

If a malignancy is identified, thyroid replacement medication may be withheld for several weeks. This allows a radioactive scan to better detect any remaining microscopic thyroid tissue or spread of malignant cells to lymph nodes or other sites in the body.

Thyroid Treatments and Surgery Results

Eliminate Suffering

It should only take a few days for you to start feeling better after you start taking the medication. On the other hand, it might be a few months before the levels of thyroid hormone in your body return to normal after receiving Thyroid Treatment. In the event that your levels improve but you continue to have symptoms such as lethargy and weight gain, your physician may need to adjust your therapy.

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Schedule your Novi thyroid treatments and surgery consultation with ENT Specialists today

Our Specialists Are Here To Help

Thyroid disorders are treated comprehensively at ENT Specialists in Novi, Brighton, and Bingham Farms, MI. Our thyroid experts are skilled in the diagnosis and treatment of a wide spectrum of thyroid and parathyroid disorders. Make your Thyroid Treatment appointment with us today!

Thyroid Treatments and SurgeryFrequently Asked Questions

Your surgeon may be able to remove a portion of your thyroid while still allowing the remaining thyroid tissue to continue producing and releasing thyroid hormones. This procedure is called a "partial thyroidectomy." This is most likely the case if you have a nodule on your thyroid, which is the source of your thyroid problem. People who have only one side of their thyroid removed are able to produce adequate amounts of thyroid hormone following surgery around 75 percent of the time, allowing them to avoid the need for hormone replacement treatment.

The primary danger associated with taking an excessive amount of thyroid medication is the possibility that you could develop signs of an overactive thyroid, such as a rapid heartbeat, sensitivity to heat, difficulty sleeping, weariness, weight loss, or anxiety. If you are experiencing these symptoms, your physician may need to reduce the dosage that you are taking.

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You're entitled to a higher quality of life. At ENT Specialists, our warm and compassionate team will keep you comfortable and happy throughout your relief journey. Schedule your one-on-one consultation today to experience the difference ENT Specialists can make in your life! We offer ENT treatments in Novi, Brighton, and Bingham Farms.

25500 Meadowbrook Road Suite 220, Novi, MI 48375