SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, April 3: Expert physicians of the Continuous Medical Education (CME) national group, in a pan-India survey, have found that ten per cent of the population in Jharkhand is suffering from thyroid dysfunction.
CME founder and national executive member of the Research Society for Studies in India (RSSDI), Dr NK Singh, said that no responsible agency had conducted a specific survey of thyroid patients in Jharkhand.
“However, according to the national assessment, 10% of the state’s population is affected by thyroid dysfunction,” he added.
Thyroid is a common disease
Dr Singh said that thyroid is a common disease, but the case is major. If it is not detected timely, it could be serious. “Hypothyroidism is a common form of thyroid dysfunction,” he observed.
According to a survey report of CME experts, many women suffer from subclinical thyroid symptoms which are not apparent, unrecognizable and difficult to identify.
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Laziness, fatigue, and tiredness are early signs
“Laziness, fatigue, tiredness, swelling of face and foot, and change in voice are some early signs of thyroid symptoms that require immediate attention and tests to avoid the disease. Inordinate delay in the test can land the patient in trouble,” said Dr Singh, who is the director of the Diabetes and Heart Research Centre (DHRC).
Understanding thyroid hormone dysfunction (hypo or hyper) is only done through blood tests, which can be readily treated with supplements.
Women and Thyroid hormone
CME expert physicians said understanding thyroid deficiency at subclinical levels is difficult for women because of the overlapping symptoms with many other disorders or conditions.
“Thyroid hormone is always an apprehension and concern for women!. If we take obesity, it is mainly seen as a problem of over-eating and the thyroid hormone levels will be secondary. Similarly, for women, fatigue and mood disorders, anaemia or iron levels will have overlapping symptoms with thyroid,” they said.
