Thyroid Disease - The Effects of Thyroid Disease on Your Eyes
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Many body functioning processes are affected by the thyroid gland including metabolism. This endocrine gland is butterfly shaped and manufactures and secretes Thyroxin or T4 in response to TSH being released from the pituitary gland. The thyroid gland responds to this by secreting the necessary amount of thyroid hormone into the blood stream.
Hypothyroidism is characterized by an inefficient amount of T4 being present in the system. Hyperthyroidism is characterized by an over abundance of T$ being present in the system. Each of these conditions are considered autoimmune diseases as they both indicate a thyroid hormone imbalance. Signs of these illnesses being present include thyroid eye disease.
What Is Thyroid Eye Disease?
Thyroid eye disease, or TED, is characterized by the protrusion of the eyeballs. It is most prevalent in Graves disease, caused by an overproduction of thyroid hormone or hyperthyroidism, also known as overactive thyroid. This condition also presents itself when thyroid hormone levels are normal (euthyroid), as well as when there is inefficient thyroid hormone (hypothyroidism) present in the body.
Other names for TED include exophthalmia, orbitapathy and ophthalmopathy. In most cases of TED, the sufferer is unable to close the eyelids completely resulting in dryness and irritation. One solution may be to tape the eyelids shut during the hours of sleep to avoid further eye damage.
The effects of thyroid disease have an impact on the eye muscles that become swollen, pushing the eyeball forward. Other causes may include infection of the eye, enlarged blood vessels, and tumors. The bulging may occur in one or both eyes. Approximately 80 percent of all patients with TED have Graves’ disease due to hyperactive thyroid. Other cases involve Hashimoto’s thyroiditis Hashitoxicosis, or atrophic thyroiditis.
Signs and Symptoms of TED:
- Proptosis (exophthalmos or bulging)
- Conjunctivitis (inflammation of eye)
- Dryness
- Eyelid retraction
- Eyelid lag
- Twitching
- Redness
- Itching
- Double vision
- Retrobulbar pain
- Pain on or behind the eye
- Chemosis (edema or swelling)
- Swelling
- Blurriness
- Eye muscle paralysis
- Corneal irritation leading to corneal inflammation
- Difficulty moving the eyes
- Foreign body sensation
- Formation of scar tissue
- Lacrimation (tearing)
- Sensitivity to light
- Upper eyelid droop
- Staring
- Visual impairment
Surgical Treatment:
Orbital decompression surgery: This specialized surgery focuses on removing the bone between the cavity surrounding the eye or the orbit and the surrounding sinuses. The result is additional space for swelling behind the eyes while decreasing protrusion and pressure on the optic nerve.
Eye muscle surgery: This procedure aims to correct the misaligned eye muscles, improving single vision in the straight-ahead gaze and the down gaze. However, proper eye alignment may require more than one surgery.
Eyelid surgery: In Graves’ ophthalmopathy the eyelids open more widely. The surgery on eyelids is performed to correct this to give a look that is as close to normal as possible.
A licensed registered nurse and passionate writer, Barb Hicks loves to write and share her knowledge. You can find her articles about Thyroid Disease Symptoms and Thyroid Disorders Tests on Clivir.com.
