What are the general treatment options for hyperthyroid patients?
A. If a hyperthyroid condition is caused by thyroiditis, it will probably be a temporary condition and may require either no treatment, beta-blocking drugs such as Propranolol or Lopressor to help control the symptoms, or a corticosteroid to treat inflammation. One type of thyroiditis, Hashimoto’s, often leads to hypothyroidism. This would require the usual thyroid hormone replacement prescription. If hyperthyroidism is caused by a condition called Graves’ Disease, the treatment choices will probably be: 1. medication 2. RAI (radio iodine therapy – may require a second treatment no sooner than 6 months later) 3. surgery Sometimes the active symptoms in Graves’ Disease will ‘go away’ for awhile ( into remission ) but it will return months or years later. RAI or surgery is sometimes required to treat it permanently. Some medications used to treat hyperthyroidism are Propylthiouracil, Methimazole or Tapazole. If taking these medications, there is a small risk that a person may develop flu
