What is the difference between hypothyroidism and hyperparathyroidism?
I have been diagnosed with hypothyroidism and take medication to control it. I am having other symptoms and am wondering if I may have hyperparathyroidism. Is there a correlation between the two?
Tagged with: correlation • hypothyroidism • medication
Filed under: Symptoms Of Underactive Thyroid
hypothyroidism is an underactive thyroid; whereas hyperparathyroidism is an overactive thyroid.Medication is very different for each.
So the thyroid and parathyroid are two completely different organs. The thyroid is located to either side of the adams apple and the parathyroid is nestled inside of the thyroid itself. Hypothyroid means that your thyroid is not producing enough T3(thyroxine) and T4(triiodothyronine.) These hormones generally serve to keep your body metabolizing and healthy. Since the thyroid is not making them you have to take a pill of synthetic T3 (synthroid is the most common.) To make sure that you are taking enough synthroid you will have to get periodic blood tests measuring your TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) which is the hormone that your brain uses to tell the thyroid to work harder.
So hyperparathyroidism is a disorder in which the parathyroid gland causes too much calcium to be pulled off your bones and released into the blood. Calcium operates in a completely different way and has nothing to do with your T3.
The diseases are not related in any way as they are completely different glands that just happen to spoon together. If you are worried about it you can ask your doc to run a simple blood test to see if you have elevated calcium which would indicate hyperparathyroid. If you have any questions feel free to message me.
Edit: Brittany is actually incorrect. The thyroid and parathyroid are different things entirely and are formed of different glandular structures. Thus hyperparathyroidism has nothing to do with the thyroid.
The only relationship is spatial. The thyroid and parathyroid are right next to each other. Some doctors will perform a thyroidectomy for hyperthyroidism (a very bad idea, btw, unless you have cancer.) The surgery can damage the parathyoid, and you will wind up with hypothyroidism and also hypoparathyroidism. That’s the only connection.