[Anonymous]

#1020067

Surgery?

I have never thought about having surgery on my eyes.

Do people do that?
Do you think it would work.

I am sorry I have so many questions.

Does Graves disease go away or will I have it forever no matter what treatment I get?

I am not new to it but I have never had an outlet to ask these questions.

[Anonymous]

#1075907

There are any number of surgeries that are done to alleviate the issues associated with thyroid eye disease. But in the case of saggy skin under the eyes, that would be a plastic surgery procedure. I have a friend who just had this done — she called it a “mini face lift.”

There are two different ways of looking at Graves disease, in terms of answering your other question. Graves is an autoimmune disease — it is caused by antibodies, and antibodies, once formed, tend not to disappear. They can wax or wane in numbers for no well-understood reason, but they tend to be forever. So, in that sense, once we get Graves, we can expect to have it forever.

The second answer, however, is that Graves is selective about the tissues it attacks, and there are treatments. Therefore, it will not make us constantly ILL, provided we have the appropriate treatment and follow-through. So, yes, we can expect to have the antibodies forever, but no, we can also expect to live healthy lives, despite them.

I hope this answers your question.
Bobbi — NGDF Online Facilitator

[Anonymous]

#1075908

I have Graves Disease but not the eye disease. I just wanted to say hello and I wish you the best.

[Anonymous]

#1075909

You asked if Graves’ disease will go away or if you’ll have it forever, no matter what treatment you get.

Basically, you’ll have Graves’ Disease forever, but it is treatable. The thyroid and the eyes can be treated separately. The thyroid can be controlled, and the hyperthyroidism can be permanently treated by radioactive iodine or surgery if you destroy the thyroid and trade hyperthyroidism for hypothyroidism.

If you have the eye disease, it’s possible that some of the problems will improve on their own in time, but for some people they don’t improve very much. For most people the problems never go completely away. It depends on how severe they were to begin with, and it depends on the individual patient.

People who have severe cases of eye disease usually need or want surgery to correct the problems the disease caused, including proptosis (buggy eyes), lid retraction, fat in the skin around the eyes, and double vision. Dry eyes can be treated by blocking the puncta (holes through which excess tears drain out of the eyes) and by using artificial tears and ointments. Dry eyes are often a problem for people with Graves’ who have no other obvious signs of eye disease.

How long have you had Graves’ Disease? How have you treated your thyroid?

Dianne W
Online Facilitator

[Anonymous]

#1075910

I have had graves disease for I would say over eight years but it was only diagnosed two and a half years. So I really annoyed everyone around me for years because I could not control my moods. I collapsed a lot too which was really scary.
when I was diagnosed I wasn’t even talking to my family.
I am being treated with propylthiouracil for another six month maybe more.
then if that doesn’t work we will have to discuss the other options.

Thanks so much for all the replies to my posts.

[Author]

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