What are the glands of the body. Explore the endocrine system and its key glands, their functions, and common disorders.

Understanding the Endocrine System

The endocrine system is a complex network of glands that produce and secrete hormones throughout the body. These hormones play a crucial role in regulating various physiological processes, including growth, metabolism, sexual function, and stress response.

The Key Endocrine Glands

The endocrine system is composed of several key glands, each with its own unique function:

• Hypothalamus

  This gland, located in the brain, acts as the control center of the endocrine system. It communicates with the pituitary gland to regulate hormone production and release.

• Pituitary Gland

  Often referred to as the “master gland,” the pituitary gland produces a variety of hormones that influence other endocrine glands and various bodily functions.

• Pineal Gland

  The pineal gland is responsible for the production of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate the sleep-wake cycle.

  

• Thyroid Gland

  The thyroid gland produces thyroid hormones, which play a crucial role in regulating metabolism, growth, and development.

• Parathyroid Glands

  These four small glands located behind the thyroid gland help maintain proper calcium and phosphorus levels in the body.

• Thymus Gland

  The thymus gland is essential for the development and function of the immune system, particularly in children.

• Adrenal Glands

  Situated above the kidneys, the adrenal glands produce hormones that help the body respond to stress and regulate blood pressure, heart rate, and other vital functions.

• Pancreas

  The pancreas is responsible for producing insulin and glucagon, hormones that regulate blood sugar levels.

• Ovaries and Testes

  The ovaries in women and the testes in men produce the sex hormones that are responsible for the development of secondary sexual characteristics and reproductive function.

Endocrine System Functions

The endocrine system is responsible for a wide range of critical bodily functions, including:

• Regulating metabolism and energy levels
• Controlling growth and development
• Maintaining homeostasis, or the body’s internal balance
• Supporting reproductive health and fertility
• Managing the body’s response to stress
• Influencing mood, emotions, and cognitive function

Endocrine System Disorders

When the endocrine system is not functioning properly, it can lead to a variety of health issues, such as:

• Hypothyroidism

  A condition where the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormones, resulting in a slower metabolism, weight gain, and fatigue.

• Hyperthyroidism

  A condition where the thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone, leading to an accelerated metabolism, weight loss, and increased heart rate.

• Diabetes

  A condition where the body either does not produce enough insulin (type 1 diabetes) or cannot effectively use the insulin it produces (type 2 diabetes), resulting in high blood sugar levels.

• Cushing’s Syndrome

  A condition caused by excessive production of cortisol, the “stress hormone,” which can lead to weight gain, high blood pressure, and other health issues.

  

• Addison’s Disease

  A condition where the adrenal glands do not produce enough cortisol and aldosterone, resulting in fatigue, low blood pressure, and weight loss.

Maintaining Endocrine Health

Keeping the endocrine system healthy and functioning properly is crucial for overall well-being. Some key steps to maintain endocrine health include:

• Maintaining a balanced diet rich in essential nutrients
• Engaging in regular physical activity
• Managing stress through various techniques, such as meditation or yoga
• Regularly monitoring hormone levels through blood tests
• Seeking prompt medical attention for any suspected endocrine-related issues

The Importance of the Endocrine System

The endocrine system is a complex and vital part of the human body, responsible for regulating a wide range of physiological processes. Understanding the function and disorders of the endocrine system is crucial for maintaining overall health and well-being. By recognizing the importance of this intricate system and taking steps to support its health, individuals can ensure their bodies are operating at their optimal level.

The Endocrine System and Glands of the Human Body: Function and Disorders

Written by Barbara Brody

• What Is the Endocrine System?
• What Is a Gland?
• Endocrine System Functions
• Parts of the Endocrine System
• Health Issues
• Endocrine System Disorders
• More

The endocrine system is a network of glands in your body that make the hormones that help cells talk to each other. They’re responsible for almost every cell, organ, and function in your body.

If your endocrine system isn’t healthy, you might have problems developing during puberty, getting pregnant, or managing stress. You also might gain weight easily, have weak bones, or lack energy because too much sugar stays in your blood instead of moving into your cells where it’s needed for energy.

A gland is an organ that makes and puts out hormones that do a specific job in your body. Endocrine and exocrine glands release the substances they make into your bloodstream.

Your endocrine system:

• Makes hormones that control your moods, growth and development, metabolism, organs, and reproduction
• Controls how your hormones are released
• Sends those hormones into your bloodstream so they can travel to other body parts

Many glands make up the endocrine system. The hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and pineal gland are in your brain. The thyroid and parathyroid glands are in your neck. The thymus is between your lungs, the adrenals are on top of your kidneys, and the pancreas is behind your stomach. Your ovaries (if you’re a woman) or testes (if you’re a man) are in your pelvic region.

• Hypothalamus. This organ connects your endocrine system with your nervous system. Its main job is to tell your pituitary gland to start or stop making hormones.
• Pituitary gland. This is your endocrine system’s master gland. It uses information it gets from your brain to tell other glands in your body what to do. It makes many important hormones, including growth hormone; prolactin, which helps breastfeeding moms make milk; antidiuretic hormone(ADH) (vasopressin), which controls blood pressure and helps control body water balance through its effect on the kidney, corticotropin /ACTH: Adrenocorticotrophic hormone. which stimulates the adrenal gland to make certain hormones, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which stimulates the production and secretion of thyroid hormones, oxytocin which helps in milk ejection during breast feeding; and luteinizing hormone, which manages estrogen in women and testosterone in men.
• Pineal gland. It makes a chemical called melatonin that helps your body get ready to go to sleep.
• Thyroid gland. This gland makes thyroid hormone, which controls your growth and metabolism. If this gland doesn’t make enough (a condition called hypothyroidism), everything happens more slowly. Your heart rate might slow down. You could get constipated. And you might gain weight. If it makes too much (hyperthyroidism), everything speeds up. Your heart might race. You could have diarrhea. And you might lose weight without trying. The thyroid gland also produces the hormone calcitonin, which may contribute to bone strength by helping calcium to be incorporated into bone.
• Parathyroid. This is a set of four small glands behind your thyroid. They play a role in bone health. The glands control your levels of calcium and phosphorus.
• Thymus. This gland makes white blood cells called T-lymphocytes that fight infection and are crucial as a child’s immune system develops. The thymus starts to shrink after puberty.
• Adrenals. Best known for making the “fight or flight” hormone adrenaline (also called epinephrine), these two glands also make hormones called corticosteroids. They affect your metabolism heart rate, oxygen intake, blood flow, and sexual function, among other things.
• Pancreas. This organ is part of both your digestive and endocrine systems. It makes digestive enzymes that break down food. It also makes the hormones insulin and glucagon. These ensure you have the right amount of sugar in your bloodstream and your cells.
• If you don’t make insulin, which is the case for people with type 1 diabetes, your blood sugar levels can get dangerously high. In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas usually makes some insulin but not enough.
• Ovaries. In women, these organs make estrogen and progesterone. These hormones help develop breasts at puberty, regulate the menstrual cycle, and support a pregnancy.
• Testes. In men, the testes make testosterone. It helps them grow facial and body hair at puberty. It also tells the penis to grow larger and plays a role in making sperm.

As you get older, it’s natural to notice some things related to your endocrine system. Your metabolism tends to slow down. So you might gain weight even though you haven’t changed how you eat or exercise. Hormonal shifts also explain, at least in part, why you’re more likely to have heart disease, osteoporosis, and type 2 diabetes as you age.

No matter how old you are, stress, infections, and being around certain chemicals can also mess with parts of your endocrine system. And genetics or lifestyle habits can increase your chances of an endocrine disorder like hypothyroidism, diabetes, or osteoporosis.

• Acromegaly. Sometimes the pituitary gland makes too much growth hormone and your bones get bigger. It usually affects your hands, feet, and face. It usually starts in middle age.
• Adrenal insufficiency. When you have this, your adrenal glands don’t make enough of certain hormones, like cortisol, which controls stress.
• Cushing’s disease. In this, your body makes too much cortisol. You could gain weight, get stretch marks, bruise easily at first, then get weakened muscles and bones and possibly develop a hump on your upper back.
• Hyperthyroidism. This is when your thyroid gland makes more hormones than your body needs. You might hear it called overactive thyroid. It makes your system run fast and you might feel nervous, lose weight, and have a rapid heartbeat or trouble sleeping.
• Hypothyroidism. When your body doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone, your system slows down. You might feel tired, gain weight, have a slow heartbeat, and get joint and muscle pains.
• Hypopituitarism. Sometimes your pituitary gland doesn’t make enough of certain hormones and your adrenal and thyroid glands can’t work right.
• Multiple endocrine neoplasia. This is a group of disorders that affect your endocrine system. It causes tumors on at least two endocrine glands or in other organs and tissues.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome. An imbalance of reproductive hormones can cause your ovaries to either not make an egg or not release it during ovulation. This can throw off your periods, cause acne, and make hair to grow on your face or chin.
• Precocious puberty. When glands that control reproduction don’t work properly, some kids start puberty abnormally early — around 8 in girls and 9 in boys.

Top Picks

The Endocrine System and Glands of the Human Body: Function and Disorders

Written by Barbara Brody

• What Is the Endocrine System?
• What Is a Gland?
• Endocrine System Functions
• Parts of the Endocrine System
• Health Issues
• Endocrine System Disorders
• More

The endocrine system is a network of glands in your body that make the hormones that help cells talk to each other. They’re responsible for almost every cell, organ, and function in your body.

If your endocrine system isn’t healthy, you might have problems developing during puberty, getting pregnant, or managing stress. You also might gain weight easily, have weak bones, or lack energy because too much sugar stays in your blood instead of moving into your cells where it’s needed for energy.

A gland is an organ that makes and puts out hormones that do a specific job in your body. Endocrine and exocrine glands release the substances they make into your bloodstream.

Your endocrine system:

• Makes hormones that control your moods, growth and development, metabolism, organs, and reproduction
• Controls how your hormones are released
• Sends those hormones into your bloodstream so they can travel to other body parts

Many glands make up the endocrine system. The hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and pineal gland are in your brain. The thyroid and parathyroid glands are in your neck. The thymus is between your lungs, the adrenals are on top of your kidneys, and the pancreas is behind your stomach. Your ovaries (if you’re a woman) or testes (if you’re a man) are in your pelvic region.

• Hypothalamus. This organ connects your endocrine system with your nervous system. Its main job is to tell your pituitary gland to start or stop making hormones.
• Pituitary gland. This is your endocrine system’s master gland. It uses information it gets from your brain to tell other glands in your body what to do. It makes many important hormones, including growth hormone; prolactin, which helps breastfeeding moms make milk; antidiuretic hormone(ADH) (vasopressin), which controls blood pressure and helps control body water balance through its effect on the kidney, corticotropin /ACTH: Adrenocorticotrophic hormone. which stimulates the adrenal gland to make certain hormones, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which stimulates the production and secretion of thyroid hormones, oxytocin which helps in milk ejection during breast feeding; and luteinizing hormone, which manages estrogen in women and testosterone in men.
• Pineal gland. It makes a chemical called melatonin that helps your body get ready to go to sleep.
• Thyroid gland. This gland makes thyroid hormone, which controls your growth and metabolism. If this gland doesn’t make enough (a condition called hypothyroidism), everything happens more slowly. Your heart rate might slow down. You could get constipated. And you might gain weight. If it makes too much (hyperthyroidism), everything speeds up. Your heart might race. You could have diarrhea. And you might lose weight without trying. The thyroid gland also produces the hormone calcitonin, which may contribute to bone strength by helping calcium to be incorporated into bone.
• Parathyroid. This is a set of four small glands behind your thyroid. They play a role in bone health. The glands control your levels of calcium and phosphorus.
• Thymus. This gland makes white blood cells called T-lymphocytes that fight infection and are crucial as a child’s immune system develops. The thymus starts to shrink after puberty.
• Adrenals. Best known for making the “fight or flight” hormone adrenaline (also called epinephrine), these two glands also make hormones called corticosteroids. They affect your metabolism heart rate, oxygen intake, blood flow, and sexual function, among other things.
• Pancreas. This organ is part of both your digestive and endocrine systems. It makes digestive enzymes that break down food. It also makes the hormones insulin and glucagon. These ensure you have the right amount of sugar in your bloodstream and your cells.
• If you don’t make insulin, which is the case for people with type 1 diabetes, your blood sugar levels can get dangerously high. In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas usually makes some insulin but not enough.
• Ovaries. In women, these organs make estrogen and progesterone. These hormones help develop breasts at puberty, regulate the menstrual cycle, and support a pregnancy.
• Testes. In men, the testes make testosterone. It helps them grow facial and body hair at puberty. It also tells the penis to grow larger and plays a role in making sperm.

As you get older, it’s natural to notice some things related to your endocrine system. Your metabolism tends to slow down. So you might gain weight even though you haven’t changed how you eat or exercise. Hormonal shifts also explain, at least in part, why you’re more likely to have heart disease, osteoporosis, and type 2 diabetes as you age.

No matter how old you are, stress, infections, and being around certain chemicals can also mess with parts of your endocrine system. And genetics or lifestyle habits can increase your chances of an endocrine disorder like hypothyroidism, diabetes, or osteoporosis.

• Acromegaly. Sometimes the pituitary gland makes too much growth hormone and your bones get bigger. It usually affects your hands, feet, and face. It usually starts in middle age.
• Adrenal insufficiency. When you have this, your adrenal glands don’t make enough of certain hormones, like cortisol, which controls stress.
• Cushing’s disease. In this, your body makes too much cortisol. You could gain weight, get stretch marks, bruise easily at first, then get weakened muscles and bones and possibly develop a hump on your upper back.
• Hyperthyroidism. This is when your thyroid gland makes more hormones than your body needs. You might hear it called overactive thyroid. It makes your system run fast and you might feel nervous, lose weight, and have a rapid heartbeat or trouble sleeping.
• Hypothyroidism. When your body doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone, your system slows down. You might feel tired, gain weight, have a slow heartbeat, and get joint and muscle pains.
• Hypopituitarism. Sometimes your pituitary gland doesn’t make enough of certain hormones and your adrenal and thyroid glands can’t work right.
• Multiple endocrine neoplasia. This is a group of disorders that affect your endocrine system. It causes tumors on at least two endocrine glands or in other organs and tissues.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome. An imbalance of reproductive hormones can cause your ovaries to either not make an egg or not release it during ovulation. This can throw off your periods, cause acne, and make hair to grow on your face or chin.
• Precocious puberty. When glands that control reproduction don’t work properly, some kids start puberty abnormally early — around 8 in girls and 9 in boys.

Top Picks

General symptoms arising from diseases of the thyroid gland.

Clinic of the Thyroid Gland of Dr. A. V. Ushakov – official site.

Clinic of the Thyroid

General overview

Symptoms help to pay attention to the disease. Therefore, it is true that almost every patient, having suspected something was wrong, tries to understand whether there are signs of changes in his thyroid gland.

Most people are not familiar with the symptoms of thyroid disease. Some guess what kind of manifestations are associated with thyroid hormone metabolism. Others think they know everything about thyroid symptoms, but don’t even realize how few symptoms come from the thyroid gland itself. It really is. One of these actual thyroid symptoms is an enlargement of the gland and its protrusion (goiter).

Masking or general symptoms

There is a group of symptoms that can occur with different diseases. Even those that have nothing to do with the thyroid gland. They are as common in women as they are in men. These signs of the disease do not depend on age. Can be observed in children, in adulthood and in the elderly.

These are general symptoms. Doctors call them nonspecific. Such symptoms can accompany various diseases of different organs and systems of the body.

For example, at an appointment in our Clinic one often hears such complaints-symptoms: they can’t do anything else”…

– “it’s hard to wake up”, “drowsiness almost never goes away during the day”, “nothing in the morning and only by noon I work out, but by the evening I have no strength again and I want to sleep”, “I need to drink 2 -3 cups of coffee and take a cold shower, otherwise I can’t work, because. I want to sleep “…

– “no vitality”, “almost no strength”, “lethargy”…

– “difficult to think”, “began to forget (where I put something, what I wanted to buy, names of actors…)”, “it is difficult to systematize ”, “I can’t remember what I just wanted to do”, “I can’t switch from one topic to another as I used to”…

― “became excessively irritable”, “everything irritates me”, “I understand, but nothing I can’t help my reaction – it’s worth hurting me and . .. ”,“ I restrain myself not to answer ”…

Add to these symptoms habitual headaches, coughing, occasional discharge of mucus from the nose or throat, slight changes in body temperature, desire to take a full breath, etc. Not even every doctor can associate all these signs of the disease with the thyroid gland. What to say about the patient?

Indeed, do we not have periods of weakness or drowsiness? Headache is unpleasant, but is it a thyroid symptom? Memory impairment can be “attributed” to age, and with such a complaint, a neurologist will “find” his neurological disease and prescribe medications to improve metabolic processes in the brain. Almost every person has met all of the listed symptoms with colds, flu, bronchitis, pneumonia and other pathological processes.

These symptoms do not always hide a lack of thyroid hormones. But with a deficiency of thyroid hormones (T3f. and T4f.), Which is simultaneously accompanied by an increase in TSH, all of the listed signs of the disease are also possible.

Top

Thyroid skin symptoms

The skin, like other organs, also needs thyroid hormones. Therefore, with their deficiency, changes may appear on the surface of the body.

Patients of our Clinic, when asked about the manifestations of the disease, often report dry skin. This is most pronounced on the outer side of the folds of the limbs (elbows and knees). There, the skin becomes rougher, which not only draws attention, but also forces one to take ineffective measures.

Red spots may appear in the neck area (front) during emotional stress. They pass as soon as the patient calms down and turns his attention to less disturbing circumstances.

Sometimes (rarely) white spots may appear in the projection of the supraclavicular and subclavian fossae. This phenomenon is called vitiligo. In some cases, such a symptom may decrease and even disappear. But usually it is stable. If in the case of red spots a direct relationship with the excitation of peripheral nerve centers is usually determined, then with white spots the role of the nervous system is supplemented by other individual circumstances of the disease process.

Since hair is an appendage of the skin, it also reacts sensitively to the amount of thyroid hormones in the blood (do not confuse thyroid hormones T3 and T4 with the pituitary hormone TSH, which does not affect the skin in any way).

Head hair loss can occur in both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Even with euthyroidism, this symptom occurs. It is based not only on the direct effect of thyroid hormones on the roots (follicles) of the hair, but also on the indirect effect on the nerve cells that regulate the nutrition of each hair. The condition of the hair itself also depends on these conditions.

There may be hair loss on the limbs and trunk. With proper treatment, the volume of the hairline is usually restored. Skin symptoms include changes in sweating. Both excessive sweating and dryness can be observed.

Restlessness in the neck

Almost 25-30% of our patients complain of typical sensations in the front of the neck. This is a relatively common symptom in diseases of the thyroid gland. It is more common in women and less common in men.

In such cases, one can hear such words: “I feel a lump in my throat”, “I am choking”, “periodically squeezing”. Some patients report: “I can’t wear clothes with a collar and high collars. I want to free my neck.

There is a variety of “cervical” symptoms. Sometimes there is a periodic causeless itching of the skin of the neck. Someone feels an accumulation of mucus in the throat and cannot cough it up. At the same time, an examination by an ENT doctor does not reveal any mucus. There are varying degrees of voice impairment. Someone points out that there were unmotivated desires to cough, “soreness” and “soreness” in the throat (without any cold), they report that they have to “cough”.

All these “cervical” symptoms in diseases of the thyroid gland clearly point to an important part in the basis of the disease. Unfortunately, our colleagues do not know about it. In the Clinic of Dr. A.V. Ushakov specialists carefully study such symptoms. They help to choose individual treatment. Therefore, try to tell our doctors about your feelings and answer clarifying questions.

In Dr. A. V. Ushakov’s monograph “Benign Thyroid Diseases” (2013), we shared with colleagues our knowledge of the clinical significance of this group of symptoms that are often found in thyroid diseases. They are based on a significant activation of certain nerve centers that regulate the corresponding structures of the neck, including the skin, muscles, neck ligaments and the thyroid gland itself. In our Clinic, the state of these nerve centers is diagnosed, individual treatment is prescribed and carried out.

Weight (weight) of the body in diseases of the thyroid gland

Almost every third of our patients pays attention to changes in their weight. Usually this is an increase in weight, and much less often a decrease.

Among the symptoms of the thyroid gland, a change in body weight is perceived as the most characteristic sign of thyroid pathology. But it is not so. In each case, you need to carefully find out the mechanism of the development of the disease, its individual characteristics and connection with the state of the thyroid gland and its hormonal metabolism.

The diagnosis should not be simply determined by changes in body weight. It is not uncommon to read in other publications that with hypothyroidism, body weight increases, and with hyperthyroidism (thyrotoxicosis), body weight decreases. In reality, such an attitude is not common, and it is not rare that it is even the other way around. Why is that?

In this case, the “weight” symptom is influenced by two circumstances. First, in most patients, the manifestation of thyroid disease is mild or moderate. Nowadays, we are all more attentive to our health, and living conditions and awareness of diseases have improved significantly compared to those years (the first half of the 20th century), when body weight changed in contrast and articles and books were written, from which standard lists are still being rewritten. symptoms. In such cases, body weight does not have time to “respond”. Sometimes patients end up in better conditions. At the same time, thyroid hormone metabolism improves, which also affects weight. He oscillates in both directions.

Secondly, the activity of the sympathetic or parasympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system may predominate in a person. Therefore, regardless of the name of the hormonal state (euthyroidism, hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism), different changes in body weight can be observed. That is why with hyperthyroidism (thyrotoxicosis) weight may not change or even increase, and with hypothyroidism it may decrease.

Cardiac and vascular symptoms

Experienced patients are aware of tachycardia (increased heart rate), bradycardia (decrease in heart rate) and palpitations – a symptom when a person himself feels how the heart contracts. Try not to confuse tachycardia with palpitations.

Tachycardia (determined by rapid pulse) is almost always observed in thyrotoxicosis. But this is not a mandatory sign of thyrotoxicosis. A rapid heart rate can occur with euthyroidism and even hypothyroidism. Therefore, it is wrong to diagnose only by the pulse, not paying attention to the hormonal blood test.

Sleep disorders in thyroid diseases

Almost every 2nd and necessarily 3rd patient with thyroid disease during a diagnostic questioning reports a change in his sleep. The symptoms of “sleep disturbance” here are the same as in other diseases. They are not specific to thyroid diseases, but they help to navigate the overall development of the disease and choose the appropriate full-fledged treatment.

Some patients report that if they are very sleepy at 21.00 or 22.00, it is very difficult to fall asleep later. It turns out only at 1.00-2.00 at night. Others say that they wake up at night (at 2.00, 3.00 or 4.00) and cannot fall asleep. At the same time, thoughts of various worries may arise that are difficult to overcome. Still others indicate an early awakening. Fourth, on the contrary, regardless of the fact that they sleep all night, in the morning they feel not rested without sleep.

Almost all such symptoms of sleep disturbance clearly orientate in the excitation of specific nerve centers, which also have an overstraining effect on the thyroid gland.

Thyroid eye symptoms

With thyrotoxicosis (hyperthyroidism), various eye disorders can sometimes occur. The most common protrusion of the eyeballs from the orbits (exophthalmos). This symptom of thyrotoxicosis can be unilateral, occur on both sides and be expressed in different ways (i.e., the eyeballs can protrude to varying degrees).

Exophthalmos in diseases of the thyroid gland does not depend on the amount of hormones and antibodies. Its connection absolutely depends on the degree of excitation of the nerve cells that control the state of the extraorbital tissue and the eyes themselves. As the condition of these nerve cells improves, the eye signs of the disease decrease and disappear.

More about this symptom is described in the book of Dr. A. V. Ushakov “Restoration of the thyroid gland”.

Along with protrusion of the eyes, other signs associated with it appear (expansion of the palpebral fissure, rare blinking, dryness of the sclera of the eye, etc.).

This introductory article provides only partial guidance in an important area of ​​thyroid disease diagnosis, the signs. The science of symptoms in endocrinology in reality has a greater variety and volume of information about the mechanisms of development of manifestations of diseases. It is important for the patient not to overload himself with significant attention to the symptoms in order to exclude unnecessary emotional experiences. But, on the other hand, you should remember and write down the manifestations of the disease in order to convey this information to an experienced and knowledgeable doctor who can really help you.

In the Clinic of the Thyroid Gland of Dr. A. V. Ushakov, the study of symptoms and the history of the development of the disease in each patient is of great importance. Up to 30 minutes of the 2.5 hour “Diagnostics and Consultation” are allocated for this during the first appointment of the patient. For a full-fledged examination, it will be useful if the patient prepares in advance by writing a memo to himself with his symptoms and dates of events associated with the disease (when and what was detected, periods and doses of medication).

+7 (495) 346 20 38
Answers to questions

≡

Benefits

Diagnosis

Clinical Diagnostics
Methods of Diagnosis
Symptoms

ConsultationsTreatmentDiseasesBooks

≡

Benefits

Diagnosis

Diagnosis in the Clinic
Methods of diagnosis
Symptoms

ConsultationsTreatmentDiseasesBooks

Ito Clinic

Thyroid function

Location and size of the thyroid gland

The thyroid gland is located in the front of the neck, slightly
below the Adam’s apple. It covers the trachea, as if
butterfly spread its wings. Its size is about 4 cm
in height, and weight – up to 20 g.
The thyroid gland is a very thin and soft organ. IN
Normally, it cannot be detected
touching the neck, but even a slight swelling is good
palpable. Larger swelling is clearly visible
to the naked eye.

The body produces different types of hormones (female
hormones, male hormones, adrenal hormones, etc.).
Organs that produce hormones are called endocrine
organs, and the thyroid gland is one of them. Her
function is to produce thyroid hormones from
iodine contained in food (mainly in marine
algae).

What are thyroid hormones

Food proteins, fats and
carbohydrates are metabolized and used
as materials for tissue formation or as
energy for the body. Thyroid hormones function
stimulation or intensification of these metabolic processes
substances. In addition, they play an important role in the development of the fetus and
the growth of the child’s body.

There are two types of thyroid hormones: thyroxine (T4),
containing four iodine atoms, and triiodothyronine (T3) containing
three iodine atoms.

The thyroid gland produces, mainly
Thus, T4, which is transformed into T3 in the liver and other
organs and performs its function as a hormone.

Most T4 and T3 are bound to plasma proteins.
The hormones that act in the body are free T4 (Free
T4=FT4) and free T3 (Free T3=FT3), not associated with proteins
blood, which are tested in a blood test.

Functions of the pituitary gland

The body has a mechanism to maintain
almost constant level of thyroid hormones in
blood.