Graves disease

Graves disease
or toxic diffuse goitre or exophthalmic goitre

Most common type of hyperthyroidism (oversecretion of thyroid hormone), usually with goitre and exophthalmos (eyeball protrusion).

Increased thyroid hormone levels result in increased cardiac output, rapid heartbeat, and possibly heart failure. Stress may trigger a severe worsening (thyroid storm), which can lead to circulatory collapse and death. Graves disease is considered an autoimmune disease. It can sometimes be controlled by drugs; severe cases require partial or total removal of the thyroid gland. Graves disease is named after Robert James Graves, one of the first physicians to fully describe the disease.

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also called  toxic diffuse goitre  or  exophthalmic goitre 

      endocrine disorder that is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism (excess secretion of thyroid (thyroid gland) hormone) and thyrotoxicosis (effects of excess thyroid hormone action in tissue). In Graves disease the excessive secretion of thyroid hormone is accompanied by diffuse enlargement of the thyroid gland (diffuse goitre). The thyroid gland may be slightly enlarged or several times its normal size. The increased thyroid hormone production results in the symptoms and signs of hyperthyroidism. Some patients also experience exophthalmos (protrusion of the eyes (eye disease)), with eyelid retraction, edema of tissues surrounding the eyes, double vision, and occasionally loss of vision, all of which are symptoms of a condition known as Graves ophthalmopathy.

      Graves disease is an autoimmune (autoimmunity) disease (i.e., when the body reacts to its own tissues as though they were foreign substances). Patients with Graves disease produce antibodies (antibody) that act on the thyroid to increase thyroid hormone production and thyroid size. These same, or closely related, antibodies may cause Graves ophthalmopathy. Graves disease occurs in women four to six times as often as in men. It most often affects young to middle-aged adults but can occur at all ages. The underlying cause of Graves disease is not known, but there is genetic (genetics) susceptibility to the disease, and smoking is a risk factor, especially for Graves ophthalmopathy. Another characteristic of the disease is spontaneous remission of hyperthyroidism, which occurs in 30 to 40 percent of patients.

      There is no treatment for Graves disease itself. Hyperthyroidism is treated with an antithyroid drug, radioactive iodine, or, rarely, surgical removal of the thyroid.

      Graves ophthalmopathy occurs in approximately 25 percent of patients with Graves disease. It usually occurs as the patient is developing hyperthyroidism, but it can occur after hyperthyroidism is treated. There is no simple, effective treatment for the eye disease, and it may persist for years. Patients with severe inflammation of the tissues that surround the eye or with impairment of vision may be treated with a glucocorticoid or surgical decompression of the orbits.

      Approximately 2 percent of patients with Graves disease have what is called localized myxedema. This is characterized by painless lumps composed of edematous subcutaneous tissue and thickening of the overlying skin on the lower legs (sometimes called pretibial myxedema) or, rarely, the arms or trunk. Nearly all patients with localized myxedema have had hyperthyroidism in the past and have severe ophthalmopathy. The only effective treatment is application of a glucocorticoid to the affected areas of skin.

Robert D. Utiger
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Graves' disease — Classification and external resources Photo showing the classic finding of proptosis and lid retraction in Graves disease ICD 10 …   Wikipedia

  • Graves' disease — Graves dis*ease [So called after Dr. Graves, of Dublin.] Same as {Basedow s disease}. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Graves' disease — grāvz( əz) n a common form of hyperthyroidism characterized by goiter and often a slight protrusion of the eyeballs called also Basedow s disease, exophthalmic goiter Graves Robert James (1796 1853) British physician. Graves was one of the… …   Medical dictionary

  • Graves' disease — 1868, named for Irish physician Robert James Graves (1796 1853), who first recognized the disease in 1835 …   Etymology dictionary

  • Graves' disease — Graves ′ disease [[t]greɪvz[/t]] n. pat a disease characterized by an enlarged thyroid and increased basal metabolism due to excessive thyroid secretion • Etymology: 1865–70; after R. J. Graves (1796–1853), Irish physician …   From formal English to slang

  • Graves' disease — [grāvz] n. [after R. J. Graves (1797 1853), Ir physician] EXOPHTHALMIC GOITER …   English World dictionary

  • Graves'disease — (grāvz) n. A condition usually caused by excessive production of thyroid hormone and characterized by an enlarged thyroid gland, protrusion of the eyeballs, a rapid heartbeat, and nervous excitability. Also called exophthalmic goiter.   [After… …   Universalium

  • Graves disease — Klassifikation nach ICD 10 E05.0 Hyperthyreose mit diffuser Struma Basedow Krankheit (Morbus Basedow) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Graves' disease — /grayvz/, Pathol. a disease characterized by an enlarged thyroid, a rapid pulse, and increased basal metabolism due to excessive thyroid secretion; exophthalmic goiter. [1865 70; named after R. J. Graves (1796 1853), Irish physician] * * * …   Universalium

  • Graves' disease — noun Hyperthyroidism accompanied by protrusion of the eyeballs. Syn: exophthalmic goiter, Graves Basedow disease …   Wiktionary

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