Nursing Student Class Projects (Formerly MSN)
Academic Term
Summer 2015
Document Type
Project
Course Number
NURS 5330
Course Name
Advanced Pathophysiology
Professor’s Name
John D. Chovan, James R. Cacchillo
Keywords
Thyroid Disease, Hypothyroidism, Autoimmune Disease
Subject Categories
Endocrine System Diseases | Medical Pathology | Medicine and Health Sciences | Nursing
Abstract
Thyroid disease is a general term utilized to describe a variety of conditions affecting the thyroid gland, including hypothyroidism, the deficient production of thyroid hormone; hyperthyroidism, the excess production of thyroid hormone; and goiter, the physiologic swelling of the thyroid gland (Cihakova, 2001; Warren, 2014). Primary hypothyroidism is the most prevalent thyroid disease in the United States, most frequently occurring as a result of chronic autoimmune thyroiditis, specifically Hashimoto’s Disease (Warren, 2014). Hashimoto’s disease (HD), also known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and human autoimmune thyroiditis, was named after Hakaru Hashimoto, a Japanese medical scientist who first described the condition in 1912 (Cihakova, 2001). HD is a chronic autoimmune condition characterized by the presence of lymphocytic infiltration, serum autoantibodies, and destruction of thyroid tissue; as a result, hypothyroidism often ensues (Liu et al., 2014; Warren, 2014).
Recommended Citation
Hannan, Jessica, "Autoimmune Thyroiditis: A Look into Hashimoto’s Disease" (2015). Nursing Student Class Projects (Formerly MSN). 94.
https://digitalcommons.otterbein.edu/stu_msn/94