[crjszb]

in reply to: Choosing Thyroidectomy on Purpose #1075738

WhiskyWitch- I have been thinking about you daily since your post. Did you go through with having a thyroidectomy in December? If so, how did it go and how are you feeling today? Would you recommend it to someone in your similar situation? How long was recovery and hospitalization?

Things continue to be a whirlwind with me and my current situation. Since my last post I have visited with my OB/GYN who stated he would feel most comfortable caring for me if I were hypothyroid rather than hyperthyroid. Until recently we did not have an endocrinologist in town. Now that we do have one my OB/GYN stated he would feel more comfortable having the local Endo. follow my thyroid levels through pregnancy. After much debate with my husband we decided to go see the new Endo., switch my medication to PTU then (when advised )try and get pregnant. Well, I just returned from seeing the Endo., who I [i:1qbfliat]really[/i:1qbfliat] liked, and his recommendation is radioiodine ablation or surgery. So, now my options are this: ablation (can’t get pregnant for probably a year, meaning I’m [i:1qbfliat]another[/i:1qbfliat] year older) or surgery (more risk but faster regulation of levels). I don’t know anyone locally who has gone though this so I would value any advice you can give me from your recent experience. THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!

[crjszb]

in reply to: Choosing Thyroidectomy on Purpose #1075731

Thank you, Ski. I appreciate your information which forced me to look further in to the medication classifications. I was incorrect saying PTU was known to cause birth defects. During my previous research I found PTU to be a class D drug, just as Methimazole is, and assumed they both had the same fetal outcomes. I’ve since learned that [u:9zwy1su7]not[/u:9zwy1su7] to be true. My question now is WHY is it considered Class D but supposedly safe to take during pregnancy? I understand that PTU can possibly cause the baby to have an enlarged goiter and hypothyroidism at birth. :” title=”Question” /> It seems strange to me that if a person could ‘safely’ have surgery (meaning fully understanding the risks) that that wouldn’t be preferred over taking PTU during pregnancy.

I think my next step will be consulting with my OB/GYN to see what he has to say about this. In the meantime, I feel somewhat at peace with the information I’ve gathered, even though I’m no closer to making a decision as to how I should proceed.

Thank you again for your response(s).

[crjszb]

in reply to: Choosing Thyroidectomy on Purpose #1075729

This is my first time posting a question to a board but I feel the need to get some insight from others about my current situation. I was diagnosed with Grave’s Disease after the birth of our daughter in 2005. Since that time I have been on Tapazole with the hope my disease would go into remission and I could be off the medication. For the last 6 months I have been off the medication and my levels continued to creep back up, causing symptoms, and ultimately my return to taking the medication. My disease is labeled as mild and I have no nodes or enlargement of the thyroid. Definitely the best case scenario, however it seems I can’t be off the medication.

I am 34 and my husband and I wish to add to our family. I have spoken to an endocrinologist, family doctor, internist and surgeon who all pretty much gave me different opinions. The endo. is encouraging me to get pregnant and take PTU which has been known to cause birth defects. To me that’s a no brainer … don’t do it! How could I live with myself if I gave birth to a child with a defect, knowing I caused it? I am leaning towards surgery for simplicity-sake but again, the endo. tried steering me away from that because of the multiple risks. I saw the surgeon yesterday and he was very confident about doing the surgery and of my recovery and ability to proceed with pregnancy as soon as my levels were regulated again.

It’s obviously not recommended to take medication during pregnancy but supposedly taking PTU is the norm? I’m very confused and nervous about making a decision whether or not to proceed with surgery. From what I’ve read, it’s not as terrible as some have made it out to be. Obviously, there’s always a chance for something to go wrong. I would appreciate any insight I could get. Thank you for your time!

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