Journal of Korean Thyroid Association  2015;8(1):113-116

doi:10.11106/cet.2015.8.1.113

A Case of Severe Recurrent Painless Thyroiditis Requiring Thyroidectomy.

So Hyun PARK 1 ; Il Seong NAM-GOONG ; Young Il KIM ; Yun Sun KIM ; Yung Min KIM ; Eun Sook KIM

Affiliations

+expand

Keywords

Thyroid disease; Thyroid surgery; Thyrotoxicosis

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

The course of painless thyroiditis is usually transient with a thyrotoxicosis phase that lasts for 2 months before recovery. Therefore, no treatment is required. This case is unusual because of the recurrence and severity of thyrotoxicosis, which required surgery of the thyroid gland to prevent a thyrotoxic crisis. A 43-year-old female who presented with severe thyrotoxicosis was found to have low radioactive iodine uptake, negative test results for TSH receptor antibodies, normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate and diffuse goiter without pain or tenderness; these findings suggested a diagnosis of painless thyroiditis. She was treated for relapsed painless thyroiditis for 10 years. However, in May 2014, she developed recurrent painless thyroiditis with severe thyrotoxicosis; free T4 41.5 ng/dL, TSH <0.005 mlU/mL. Owing to the severity and recurrence of thyrotoxicosis, total thyroidectomy was performed to prevent a thyrotoxic storm.