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| CONTACT: | Diana Schenker Fleishman-Hillard 212/453-2410 schenked@fleishman.com |
| Sissy Crabtree AACE 904/353-7878 scrabtree@aace.com |
2004 THYROID AWARENESS CAMPAIGN ENCOURAGES PATIENTS AND PHYSICIANS TO TAKE CONTROL OF THYROID HEALTH
~January is Thyroid Awareness Month~
NEW YORK - January 22, 2004 - Did you know that an estimated 27 million Americans are affected by thyroid disease, more than the number of Americans diagnosed with diabetes and cancer combined?1,2 Because the thyroid produces hormones that regulate metabolism in essentially every organ, tissue and cell in the body, thyroid disease requires expert monitoring and tight control. Out of growing concern for the number of thyroid patients who may not be in full control of their condition, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists' (AACE) 2004 thyroid awareness campaign, Take Control of Your Health: Keep Your Thyroid in Balance, launched today with the goal of making treatment standards easy to understand and follow for all thyroid patients. For this year's campaign, the American Thyroid Association (ATA) has joined forces with AACE to spread the word of the importance of good thyroid health.
As part of the campaign, AACE has created The 3“Ts” of Thyroid Health - three easy steps that allow patients and physicians the opportunity to keep the thyroid in balance.
1) Test Your Thyroid: Knowing the symptoms and risk factors associated with thyroid disease is half the battle. If you are exhibiting symptoms (see below) or are over age 35, ask your doctor to perform a Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) blood test to check your thyroid function.
2) Take Your Medicine: If you are on therapy for thyroid disease, take your medicine every day, as directed by your doctor. Staying on the same brand and dose of thyroid medicine prescribed by your doctor is also critical for optimal disease management, so check your prescription at every refill to make sure it is correct - each size is a different color!
3) Track Your Condition: See your doctor regularly and get a TSH test every 6-12 months. Report any recurrence of symptoms - or new symptoms - to your doctor immediately.
"If thyroid patients are not monitored and controlled, they may suffer from more serious health problems - such as elevated cholesterol, heart disease, osteoporosis, infertility, and depression," said Donald A. Bergman, M.D., F.A.C.E., and President of AACE. "AACE’s 2004 thyroid awareness campaign is an empowering call-to-action to both patients and physicians to take a more active role in keeping both the thyroid - and patients' overall health - in better balance."
According to AACE guidelines3 , patients need to be screened for thyroid disease with a TSH test once they reach 35, or if they present with any symptoms or risk factors associated with thyroid disease such as fatigue, mood swings, forgetfulness, weight gain, depression, and dry, coarse skin and hair. Once diagnosed with thyroid disease, a TSH test should be conducted regularly for optimal observation of treatment. AACE guidelines, revised in 2002, note that the optimal TSH range has been narrowed to 0.3 to 3.0 mlU/L.
"Because the symptoms of thyroid disease are somewhat vague or subtle, patients often don’t know they should be asking their doctor for a TSH test,” said Bergman. “In fact, since hypothyroidism can develop quite slowly, many patients have said they didn’t realize they were ill until they began treatment and started feeling more energetic and healthy."
Thyroid patients are traditionally treated with a once-daily dose of levothyroxine sodium (LT4), which requires precise, consistent control and dosing. Small differences in LT4 absorption may have a significant effect on patients, especially elderly patients, patients with thyroid cancer or cardiovascular conditions, or patients who are or become pregnant. According to AACE guidelines, any switch of a patient's LT4 brand or dose must be closely monitored, and the patient retested and retitrated by a physician over several office visits in order to ensure optimal TSH levels.
About Thyroid Disease
If the thyroid gland doesn't work properly, neither do you. The thyroid gland is a butterfly-shaped gland located in the neck just below the Adam's apple and above the collarbone. Thyroid disease is of particular concern to women, who are five to eight times more likely than men to be diagnosed with the condition4. Nearly one out of 50 women in the U.S. is diagnosed with hypothyroidism during pregnancy, and six out of every 100 miscarriages can be associated with thyroid deficiency during pregnancy. The elderly are also at increased risk for the disease - by age 60, as many as 17 percent of women and nine percent of men have an underactive thyroid5 . Thyroid disease is also linked to other autoimmune diseases, including certain types of diabetes, arthritis, and anemia6 . For example, 15 to 20 percent of people with Type 1 diabetes, as well as their siblings or parents, are likely to develop a thyroid disorder during their lifetime7. Eighty percent of patients diagnosed with thyroid disease have hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)8 .
Although mild hypothyroidism can often be treated by a primary care physician, AACE recommends that certain types of hypothyroidism patients see an endocrinologist:
- Patients of age 18 years or less
- Patients unresponsive to therapy
- Pregnant patients
- Cardiac patients
- Presence of goiter, nodule, or other structural changes in the thyroid gland
- Presence of other endocrine disease
While the TSH blood test is the most sensitive and accurate diagnostic tool for thyroid disease, AACE also recommends that patients perform a simple self-examination called the Neck Check™. This easy, quick self-exam, unveiled by AACE in 1997, helps an individual to detect if they have an enlarged thyroid gland and should speak with their doctor about further testing.
For step-by-step instructions on how to perform the Neck Check, or to download additional educational materials about the 2004 awareness campaign, visit the AACE web site at www.aace.com or www.powerofprevention.com.
The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) was established in 1991 and is the country's largest professional organization of clinical endocrinologists. Its membership consists of more than 4,500 clinical endocrinologists devoted to providing care for patients with endocrine disorders. The association strives to improve the public's understanding and awareness of endocrine diseases and the added value of the clinical endocrinologist in the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases.
The American Thyroid Association (ATA), founded in 1923, is a professional society of 900 U.S. and international physicians and scientists who specialize in the research and treatment of thyroid diseases. The ATA is dedicated to promoting scientific and public understanding of the biology of the thyroid gland and its disorders, so as to improve methods for prevention, diagnosis, and management. The ATA fosters excellence in research, patient care, and education of patients, the public, and the medical and scientific communities. The ATA also guides public policy about the prevention and management of thyroid diseases.
Thyroid Awareness Month is supported through an unrestricted grant from Abbott Laboratories.
1 National Diabetes Fact Sheet: United States, November 2003.
Department of Health and Human Services and Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention.
2Cancer Facts and Figures 2003. American Cancer Society.
3AACE Medical Guidelines for Clinical Practice for the Evaluation
and Treatment of Hyperthyroidism and Hypothyroidism, Endocrine Practice,
November/December 2002, Vol. 8, No. 6, 457-469
4Wood L.C. Your Thyroid: A Home Reference, Ballantine
Books, New York, 1995 (pp. 216-217)
5Wood L.C. Your Thyroid: A Home Reference Ballantine
Books, New York, 1995 (pp. 179)
Wood L.C. Your Thyroid: A Home Reference Ballantine Books, New
York, 1995 (pp. 26)
7Adams A, Walston J, Silver K. Autoimmune Disease Risk in Families
with Type 1 Diabetes, www.genetichealth.com/Diabetes_Home.shtml
10/27/01
8Hollowell study
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