CLINICAL THYROIDOLOGY FOR PATIENTS
A publication of the American Thyroid Association

Table of Contents

EDITOR’S COMMENTS

Welcome to Clinical Thyroidology for Patients, bringing to you, the patients, the most up-to-date, cutting edge thyroid research. What you read here as research studies will likely become the accepted practice in the future. Clinical Thyroidology for Patients is published on a monthly basis and includes summaries of research studies that were discussed in a recent issue of Clinical Thyroidology, a publication of the American Thyroid Association for physicians. This means that you, the patients, are getting the latest information on thyroid research and treatment almost as soon as your physicians.

The Calendar of Events highlights educational forums and support groups that are organized around the country by members of the Alliance for Thyroid Patient Education. The Alliance member groups consist of: the American Thyroid Association, the Graves’ Disease and Thyroid Foundation, the Light of Life Foundation and ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors Association.

Follow us on Twitter at @thyroidfriends. Get the most up-to-date thyroid news fast and easy! Be the most informed thyroid patient in the waiting room. Please feel free to submit questions as well as suggestions as to how we can better serve thyroid patients.

The ATA has released a special report on the effects of radiation exposure to the thyroid from x-ray procedures entitled Policy Statement on Thyroid Shielding During Diagnostic Medical and Dental Radiology. This report is summarized in this issue on the next page.

In this issue we shine the Spotlight On: Graves’ Disease and Thyroid Foundation and an event in which a patient becomes "Greater Than Graves"!

In this issue, the studies ask the following questions:

  • Should there be universal screening for detection of thyroid disease in pregnancy?
  • How frequently are women tested for thyroid problems during pregnancy?
  • Is the baby’s brain development affected if the mother is diagnosed and treated for hypothyroidism during pregnancy?
  • Are you at risk for thyroid problems if you are exposed to intravenous dye during an x-ray study?
  • Is microscopic extension of thyroid cancer a risk factor for cancer recurrence?
  • Can radioactive iodine be used instead of a repeat surgery after lobectomy in patients with thyroid cancer?

We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Let us know what you want to see in this publication. I hope you find these summaries interesting and informative.

 

— Alan P. Farwell, MD