Ho Chi Minh City Ms. Huong, 56 years old, has had difficulty swallowing and a choking sensation in her throat for nearly a year. The doctor examined her and discovered that the thyroid tissue had moved to the area under her tongue.
She had been examined in many places and was diagnosed with pharyngitis, tonsillitis, and gastroesophageal reflux. Medication did not help. Recently, the symptoms worsened, making it difficult to eat and drink, so she went to Tam Anh General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City for examination. The endoscopy results showed that the patient had an abnormal cyst-like mass of tissue at the base of her tongue. Combining an ultrasound of the neck, a thyroid hormone test, and an MRI of the face and neck, the doctor concluded that the thyroid tissue was misplaced.
On November 30, Master, Doctor, CKI Pham Thai Duy, ENT Center, said that ectopic thyroid tissue is a congenital malformation caused by abnormal migration of the thyroid gland during the embryonic period, the most common ectopic location is at the base of the tongue. The disease can be misdiagnosed as a cyst at the base of the tongue, goiter or lingual thyroid cyst.
The patient's thyroid function was still normal, the doctor advised medical monitoring or surgery to remove the cyst. The patient chose surgery for complete treatment.
Endoscopic surgery team through the mouth. The 70-degree wide-angle endoscopic camera system, with maximum zoom, helps the doctor clearly see the location of the cyst deep in the back of the throat. The doctor uses a Coblator cutting and burning machine to stop bleeding on the spot and cut out the entire tumor.
After surgery, Mrs. Huong recovered quickly, pathology showed benign thyroid tissue.
Doctor Thuy Hang looks at the patient's MRI results before surgery. Photo: Tam Anh Hospital
MSc. Dr. Tran Thi Thuy Hang, Head of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, said that the incidence of ectopic thyroid tissue in the general population is 1/100,000-300,000 people. This tissue mass is solid or cystic, which can cause difficulty swallowing or breathing. In particular, ectopic thyroid tissue in the form of cysts like Mrs. Huong is less common and requires diagnostic imaging tools such as ultrasound, CT, MRI... to distinguish it from cysts in the base of the tongue (tumors originating from the lymphoid epithelium of the tongue containing mucous cysts inside).
Depending on the severity of the impact, patients with ectopic thyroid cysts can be treated with medication or surgery if they have difficulty swallowing, slurred speech, recurrent difficulty breathing, severe bleeding, or suspected malignancy...
Although the recurrence rate after surgery is low, patients still need regular follow-up for the doctor to evaluate thyroid function and wound healing after surgery.
The thyroid is the body's largest endocrine gland. Dr. Thuy Hang recommends that people with ectopic thyroid tissue should see an endocrinologist for in-depth consultation and regular monitoring.
Khanh Ngoc
* Patient name has been changed
| Readers ask questions about digestive diseases here for doctors to answer |
Source link
Comment (0)