How to Cure Hyperthyroidism?

Hyperthyroidism is a disease which is marked by the hyper activity of the thyroid gland; the opposite is called hypothyroidism when there is a dearth of hormonal activity.  The treatment that you will go through will much depend upon your age and the stage at which your hyperthyroidism is. There are four methods with which hyperthyroidism can be treated, these are:

• radioactive iodine,
• anti-thyroid medications,
• beta blockers and
• Surgery (thyroidectomy).

Radioactive Iodine

The most common type of medication that is recommended for ; the advantage of this lies in the fact that thyroid cells are the only cells in the body that have the ability to absorb iodine and other cells in the body do not absorb iodine. Hence, with this treatment the thyroid cells that absorb and concentrate it are damaged or killed, and the good news is that there are very little side effects for the rest of the body. It is easy to take this medication as it is taken orally and hence there is no requirement for getting hospitalised. While it takes a month or so for the thyroid cells to get killed, the radioactive elements that enter your body completely disappears in a few days.

Anti-Thyroid Medications

These medications such as propylthiouracil and methimazole, they act slowly and reduce the symptoms of hyperthyroidism. These medications act by reducing the amount of hormone produced by the thyroid gland, the results are shown in about 6 to 12 weeks. This treatment has to continue for at least a year or at times longer. It has been found that while some people have permanent cure, others experience relapse after stopping treatment.

Surgery (thyroidectomy)

Certain people are unable to tolerate anti-thyroid drugs and don't wish to have radioactive iodine therapy, in such a case a thyroid surgery can be taken into consideration, though this option is used occasionally to treat hyperthyroidism. During thyroidectomy, most part of your thyroid gland is removed. Some complications of this surgery include damage to your vocal cords and parathyroid glands. With this surgery most of your thyroid gland gets removed, however some complications may raise up. This includes damage to the vocal cord and parathyroid glands. Another important factor is that lifelong treatment with levothyroxine is needed after the surgery to maintain normal amounts of thyroid hormone in your blood. If case the parathyroid glands are also removed, medication will be needed to maintain blood-calcium levels in the normal range.