May 26th, Red Net Time (correspondent Liu Jiaqin) May 25th of each year is "World Thyroid Day", which aims to raise the awareness of thyroid health among the global residents. Recently, 35-year-old Ms. Wang came to the endocrinology clinic of the Affiliated Hospital of Hunan Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine because of her "bad temper and difficulty in concentration", and improved the thyroid color ultrasound to prompt "thyroid nodules, Ti-RADS grade 3". This startled Ms. Wang, who muttered, "What's wrong with thyroid nodules?" It's not cancer, is it? How else can we treat it? What is this classification and what is level 3? "

Yuan Chunyun, director of the Department of Geriatrics (Endocrinology), said that with the enhancement of people's health awareness and the popularization of health checkups, the positive detection rate of thyroid nodules has also increased. The high incidence of thyroid nodules is related to people's lifestyle, environmental factors, diet (high iodine or iodine deficiency diet) and individual genetic differences, and of course it is also related to the intervention of modern routine color Doppler ultrasound examination methods. Generally speaking, thyroid nodules have no typical symptoms, but when the nodules grow to a certain extent, pressing the esophagus can cause dysphagia, and pressing the recurrent laryngeal nerve can cause hoarseness and other symptoms; If thyroid function is abnormal, different clinical manifestations may appear.

So, is thyroid nodule benign or malignant? What is the ratio of benign to malignant?

According to Yuan Chunyun, the positive detection rate of thyroid nodules can reach about 50%, but only 5% of them are "thyroid cancer". Ultrasound is the most commonly used method to distinguish benign from malignant, and its accuracy rate can reach over 90%.

The total TI-RADS grade of color Doppler ultrasound for thyroid diseases is 1-6, and the higher the grade, the greater the malignancy. Specifically:

1 level refers to normal thyroid;

Grade 2 is benign nodule (malignant probability is 0%);

Grade 3 is a possible benign nodule (80% malignant probability);

Grade 6 is a malignant nodule diagnosed as cancer by puncture pathology.

TI-RADS classification is basically determined. Can low-grade benign thyroid nodules become malignant?

Yuan Chunyun said that the probability of benign thyroid nodules becoming malignant is very small, but due to various factors, new nodules may also appear. It is recommended to review thyroid color Doppler ultrasound and thyroid function examination every six months.

Who is more likely to get thyroid nodules?

1. People with a family history of thyroid diseases;

2. "Preference for women over men" is more common in middle-aged women and menopausal women;

3. High iodine or iodine deficiency diet;

4. People who have been exposed to ionizing radiation for a long time;

5. People with frequent mood swings and great mental stress.

Can thyroid nodules subside on their own? Do you have to have an operation?

If the thyroid nodule is too large, it will compress the trachea, esophagus and nerves, or it will be complicated with hyperthyroidism, or it is highly suspected to be malignant. Of course, it can also be combined with Chinese medicine.

Is it necessary to ban iodine with thyroid nodules?

If palpation or color ultrasound examination indicates "thyroid nodules", it is not necessary to ban iodine, but also to combine the patient's thyroid function examination. If the thyroid function is normal, eat normally; If you have hyperthyroidism, you need an iodine-free diet; If you have Hashimoto's thyroiditis, you need a low iodine diet.

What are the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine in treating thyroid nodules?

Yuan Chunyun introduced that thyroid nodules belong to the category of "scabies" in traditional Chinese medicine. Its internal cause is physical factors, and the main inducement is emotional imbalance. Diet and living environment are external influences. The disease is located in front of the neck and is closely related to the liver, kidney, heart and stomach. Treating "thyroid nodules" with traditional Chinese medicine can obviously alleviate the discomfort of patients with little side effects. Of course, the prescription should be used according to the different clinical manifestations of patients, and it should be added and subtracted with the syndrome.

What should the diet of patients with thyroid nodules pay attention to?

Yuan Chunyun explained that Chinese medicine pays attention to harmonizing Yin and Yang, and both medicine and food should pay attention to the dynamic balance of Yin and Yang. The specific diet should also be different according to the thyroid function of patients.

For example, patients with hyperthyroidism can't eat iodine-containing foods (kelp, seaweed) and spicy foods, tobacco and alcohol and other irritating foods. Usually, you can use Radix Adenophorae, Rhizoma Polygonati Odorati and Radix Ophiopogonis to make soup, and use chrysanthemum, rose and lotus plumule to make tea.

For example, patients with hypothyroidism should not eat cold, greasy and salty food, and their diet should be light. Warming herbs can be used to make soup, such as angelica, astragalus, American ginseng, medlar, mulberry and so on. Or glutinous rice and red beans to make porridge.

For example, patients with goiter and nodules should eat less cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage, cauliflower, radish and mustard, and eat more foods rich in selenium, such as soybeans, tomatoes, asparagus, sesame seeds and mushrooms.

Yuan Chunyun reminded that the thyroid gland is most afraid of getting angry. It controls the metabolism of the whole body, can control body temperature, mood, muscle fat ratio and reproduction, and breast health is also related to it. If the physical examination finds thyroid nodules, don't panic and don't let go. Adjust the mentality, actively cooperate with doctors, and do thyroid color ultrasound examination regularly to avoid affecting the body.