They look at how well the thyroid gland is functioning by measuring its chemical messengers (hormones) in your bloodstream. Sometimes, blood tests are needed to back up the diagnosis. How is thyroid eye disease diagnosed?ĭiagnosis can be made simply on examining your eyes if you already have a diagnosis of a thyroid gland problem. You may have other non-eye symptoms due to the abnormal thyroid gland. The two eyeballs are not always equally affected. Mild sensitivity to light (photophobia).In advanced disease, your vision may become blurred and colours can appear less vivid.You may have double vision (diplopia) as the muscles become too swollen to work properly.You may have bulging eyes, giving you a staring or startled appearance (what doctors call exophthalmos).The front of your eyes may feel (and be) dry.The front of your eyes can become red and irritated when the sensitive clear window of the eye (the cornea) is less well covered or lubricated by the eyelids.Aching (worse in the mornings) behind the eye, especially when looking up, down or sideways.Symptoms are caused by the tissues of the eye socket swelling and pushing the eyeball forwards: It is also more likely to develop if you smoke, particularly if you are a heavy smoker. Some people carry genes which make it more likely that they will develop thyroid eye disease. Thyroid eye disease generally occurs in middle age. However, people with an apparently normal thyroid gland at the time of thyroid eye disease have usually had abnormal thyroid function in the past or they go on to develop abnormal thyroid function in the future. Occasionally, thyroid eye disease occurs when the thyroid gland appears to be working normally. Most of these people also have a problem with an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism) and have an underlying autoimmune condition. Each year it affects about 16 women and 3 men in every 100,000 people. It is not known why this happens in some people and not in others. In some people, these same antibodies also attack the tissues around the eyeball, causing thyroid eye disease. See the separate leaflet called Goitre (Thyroid Swelling). Graves' disease is an autoimmune thyroid disease which causes a swelling of the thyroid gland (called a goitre). Some people have a particular tendency to develop autoimmune diseases.Īutoimmune thyroid disease occurs when the body's antibodies attack the thyroid gland. In autoimmune disease, the immune system makes antibodies against tissues of the body. The immune system normally makes small proteins (antibodies) to attack germs (for example, bacteria). Thyroid eye disease is an autoimmune disease, most often occurring in association with an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism). This is most often due to an autoimmune disease. The thyroid gland can become overactive or underactive. It has an important role in controlling the speed at which chemical reactions happen in the tissues throughout your body (metabolic rate). The thyroid gland is a small butterfly-shaped gland sitting near the top of your windpipe (trachea) at the front of your neck. Understanding thyroid eye disease The thyroid gland
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