Thyroid and pregnancy: Specialist for Worms informs
Specialist for Worms: Thyroid diseases in pregnant women must be treated
WORMS. Women with thyroid disorders often have problems realizing their desire to have children from the outset. If a pregnancy occurs, close medical care is all the more important, as Prof. Dr. med. dr. h.c. Christian Wüster emphasizes. The specialist in endocrinology also treats patients from Worms at his Hormone and Metabolism Center and has observed that many pregnant women with thyroid disorders are inadequately treated. This can lead to dangerous complications, warns the experienced endocrinologist.
Keeping an eye on the thyroid in pregnant women from the Worms region
In this context, Prof. Dr. Wüster refers to a study conducted by the Endocrinology Center in Göttingen on 63 women with hypothyroidism treated with medication. The study examined the level of the hormone TSH, a messenger substance from the pituitary gland that regulates the thyroid gland. Around half of the pregnant women had TSH levels that were either too low or too high when they first presented, indicating a poorly controlled thyroid condition. And this had fatal consequences: 29 percent of these women suffered a miscarriage, compared to only six percent in the group with normal TSH values.
“Women with hypothyroidism are also more likely to give birth to children with a low birth weight. The child’s neuropsychological development can also be impaired,” explains specialist Prof. Dr. Wüster. His conclusion: If they become aware of a pregnancy, women with a thyroid disorder should definitely see their doctor to have their blood values determined. If necessary, the TSH value must be readjusted.
Specialist for Worms: Continuously adjust the hormone dose for thyroid disorders
Another study suggests that the TSH value can change significantly in women with thyroid disorders, especially in the first trimester of pregnancy. This phenomenon was mainly observed in women with goitre or Graves’ disease. “This makes it necessary to regularly readjust the hormone dose during pregnancy. It makes sense to check at least every six to eight weeks,” advises the endocrinologist. Patients from Worms will find that Prof. Dr. Wüster’s Hormone and Metabolism Center is a competent point of contact for getting through pregnancy well despite thyroid disease.
