Thyroiditis
Post-partum thyroiditis
Like Hashimoto's thyroiditis, post-partum thyroiditis is an autoimmune condition, but it only happens in women who have recently given birth.
In post-partum thyroiditis, your immune system attacks your thyroid gland within around six months of giving birth, causinga temporary rise in thyroid hormone levels (thyrotoxicosis) and symptoms of an overactive thyroid gland .
Then, after a few weeks, your thyroid gland becomes depleted ofthyroid hormone, leading tolow levels ofthyroid hormone and symptoms of an underactive thyroid gland .
However, not every woman with post-partum thyroiditis willgo through both these phases.
If low thyroid hormone levels are causing severe symptoms, you may needto takethyroid hormone replacement until the condition gets better.
In most women with the condition, thyroid function returns to normal within 12 months after the baby is born, although the low thyroid hormone levels can sometimes be permanent.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
Thyroiditis is the medical term for inflammation (swelling) of the thyroid gland, which can either cause abnormally low or high levels of thyroid hormones in the blood.
Hashimoto's thyroiditis
Hashimoto's thyroiditis is an autoimmune condition. This means your immune system mistakenly attacks your thyroid gland, causing it to gradually swell and become damaged. As the thyroid gland is slow
De Quervain's (subacute) thyroiditis
De Quervain's thyroiditis (sometimes called subacute thyroiditis) is a painful swelling of the thyroid gland that is thought to be triggered by a viral infection, such as mumps or the flu . It's mo
Post-partum thyroiditis
Like Hashimoto's thyroiditis, post-partum thyroiditis is an autoimmune condition, but it only happens in women who have recently given birth. In post-partum thyroiditis, your immune system attacks yo
Silent (painless) thyroiditis
Silent thyroiditis is very similar to post-partum thyroiditis. It is also an autoimmune condition, but is not related to giving birth and can occur in both men and women. Like postpartum thyroiditis,
Drug-induced thyroiditis
Thyroiditis can also be triggered bymedications includinginterferon,amiodarone, lithiumand a class of drugs to treat certain cancers (which include sunitinib), if thesemedicinesdamage the thyroid glan
Radiation-induced thyroiditis
Radioactive iodine treatment for an overactive thyroid gland or radiotherapy for certain cancers can also damage the thyroid gland, leading to symptoms of an overactive thyroid gland or symptoms of
Acute or infectious thyroiditis
Acute or infectious thyroiditis is usually triggered by a bacterial infection. It is rare and is associated with either a weakened immune system or, in children, with a problem in the development of t
Subscribe
Ask the doctor
Rate this article
Find products