[KimberlyOnline Facilitator April 22, 2012 at 10:55 am Post count: 4288]

#1058981

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There are no “natural” or “alternative” therapies at this time that have been *scientifically proven* to control hyperthyroidism. In fact, staff members and volunteers at the Foundation have had contact with patients who became much more ill – and even patients who died – because they were determined to pursue an unproven, “alternative” treatment. There is actually a division of the National Institutes of Health that is called the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine — and their mission is to look at alternative and complementary therapies from a science-based perspective. Hopefully, one day, we *will* have more concrete information on the effectiveness of alternative and complimentary therapies. However, for now, there are three available conventional treatment options: Anti-Thyroid Drugs (Methimazole, Tapazole, PTU, Neomercazole, Carbimazole, etc.), Radioactive Iodine treatment to destroy the thyroid gland, and surgery to remove the thyroid gland.

All three options have risks and benefits, so it is important for patients to carefully research the options (from credible sources, of course) and work with their medical provider to make an informed decision. Patients undergoing the same treatment option will *not* necessarily have the same experience. However, you can use the “Search Posts” feature (in the top right-hand corner of the screen) and search for keywords such as “RAI”, “Radioiodine”, “Methimazole”, “PTU”, “Surgery”, “Thyroidectomy”, etc. to read personal stories from other posters. (Note: you must be logged in with your user ID and password to use the “Search Posts” feature). Following are a couple of additional resources.

Short article from Dr. David Cooper on the three treatment options “The Treatment of Graves’ Disease – Different Strokes for Different Folks”:

http://www.gdatf.org/about/about-graves-disease/patient-education/treating-graves-different-strokes-for-different-folks/

UPDATE: New Guidelines on the management of hyperthyroidism were released in August 2016. The full text is included below; the guidelines will be published in a more user-friendly format in the future:

Full Text:

http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/thy.2016.0229

Press release from the American Thyroid Association:

http://www.liebertpub.com/global/pressrelease/new-guidelines-for-managing-hyperthyroidism-and-other-causes-of-thyrotoxicosis-published-in-thyroid-journal/1972/

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