How Do Thyroid Disorders Affect Swallowing?
Difficulty swallowing can also be associated with several different thyroid issues. At Southern ENT Associates our team of experienced ENT physicians and surgeons provide comprehensive and quality care. Contact us today for more information or book an appointment. We have convenient locations to serve you in Thibodaux LA, Houma LA, Raceland LA, Morgan City LA, New Iberia LA, and Youngsville LA.
Table of Contents:
What is the thyroid?
Symptoms of swallowing problems
Thyroid surgery
Help for trouble swallowing
If you have a thyroid disorder, you may feel as if you have a lump in your throat when you swallow. In some cases, the thyroid gland is situated at the base of your neck, and when it becomes enlarged, it can press into your windpipe.
Thyroid enlargement is referred to as a goiter. Fortunately, thyroid disorders are easy to diagnose. Treatment is available to restore your thyroid hormone levels and help you feel better.
Our top-quality team of head and neck surgeons at Southern ENT routinely diagnoses problems with swallowing. True swallowing disorders have many causes, including Parkinson’s disease and esophageal cancer. But issues with the thyroid commonly cause trouble swallowing.
If you have any issues swallowing, see an ENT doctor for an examination.
Your thyroid is a small gland that produces several very important hormones that perform many functions, including controlling your heart rate and the rate at which you burn calories for energy.
Most of our patients don’t think about their thyroid unless it starts malfunctioning. The thyroid does its job without much fuss in most circumstances.
There are several situations where the thyroid may enlarge and cause issues with swallowing and these are:
• Hypothyroidism (producing too little thyroid hormone)
• Grave’s disease (autoimmune attack on the thyroid)
• Hyperthyroidism (producing too much thyroid hormone)
• Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (autoimmune attack on the thyroid)
We may use a physical exam, upper endoscopy, and blood tests to evaluate your swallowing problem.
Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) means that it takes extra effort to swallow. Instead of foods and liquids passing through the esophagus effortlessly, you may notice that you have to help the food along with some added effort as you swallow. It may feel like something is in your throat.
Many thyroid issues resolve with replacement thyroid hormone. In some cases, we may need to remove all or part of your thyroid. If this is the case, you can feel confident in the hands of our experienced head and neck surgeons.
In conventional thyroid surgery, we make an incision at the base of your neck to access and remove the affected part of the thyroid or the entire thyroid. How much of your thyroid we remove depends on your diagnosis.
If we remove part of your thyroid, the other part may still work normally and compensate for the missing part. When we remove the entire thyroid gland, we prescribe thyroid hormone replacement to restore your thyroid levels.
Never ignore difficulty swallowing. Seek medical evaluation for a prompt diagnosis and treatment so that you lower your risk of complications.
To get started, call the Southern ENT office nearest you to schedule an appointment with one of our physicians. We serve patients from Thibodaux LA, Houma LA, Raceland LA, Morgan City LA, New Iberia LA, and Youngsville LA, and surrounding areas
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