What are thyroid nodules and how to treat them?

Thyroid nodules can be benign or malignant. Benign nodules mainly include thyroid adenoma, nodular thyroid gland, etc., while malignant nodules mainly include thyroid cancer. What are the symptoms of thyroid nodules? How should thyroid nodules be treated?

1. Symptoms of thyroid nodules

1) Tracheal compression: more common. Compression from one side causes the trachea to shift or bend to the other side; compression from both sides causes the trachea to narrow and make breathing difficult, especially when there is retrosternal thyroid swelling. Long-term compression of the tracheal wall can cause tracheal softening and cause suffocation.

2) Compression of the esophagus: Rare. Only substernal thyroid glands may compress the esophagus, causing discomfort when swallowing, but will not cause obstructive symptoms.

3) Compression of deep large veins in the neck: This can cause difficulty in blood return to the head and neck. This situation is more common in large thyroid glands located at the upper opening of the chest, especially retrosternal thyroid glands. The patient's face is swollen with bluish purple color, and the superficial veins in the neck and chest are significantly dilated.

4) Compression of the recurrent laryngeal nerve: can cause vocal cord paralysis (usually on one side), and the patient's voice becomes hoarse. Compression of the sympathetic nerve ganglia in the neck can cause Horner syndrome, which is extremely rare.

2. Treatment Methods

1) Thyroid hormone: You can take some thyroid hormone preparations to inhibit excessive endogenous TSH secretion and supplement the deficiency of endogenous thyroid hormone to achieve the purpose of alleviating thyroid hyperplasia. It is suitable for thyroid adenoma caused by various causes, especially when the pathological changes are before the occurrence of colloid thyroid adenoma, it can have a significant effect.

2) Iodine supplementation: Iodine supplementation should be reasonable for those who are simply iodine deficient. After supplementation, the thyroid gland can be seen to shrink to varying degrees.

3) Treatment with Chinese medicine: Phlegm-resolving and hard-hard softening method: If only the neck is enlarged without any special subjective symptoms, it is a syndrome of qi stagnation and phlegm accumulation, and the treatment should be phlegm-resolving and hard-hard softening method.

4) Indications for surgical treatment: patients with clinical symptoms caused by compression of the trachea, esophagus or recurrent laryngeal nerve, patients with retrosternal thyroid gland, patients with giant thyroid gland that affects their daily life and work, patients with secondary hyperthyroidism due to nodular thyroid gland, and patients with suspected malignant transformation of nodular thyroid gland.