Thyroiditis and Its Effect on the Skin
The thyroid is a gland that produces hormones which affect your body's metabolism and energy level. When the thyroid is inflamed, it is called thyroiditis. Thyroiditis causes an excessive amount of the hormone thyroxine (T4) to rush into the bloodstream. Excess thyroxine tells the thyroid to stop making the hormone. This leads to hypothyroidism.
Although thyroiditis or hypothyroidism may not cause any visible symptoms to the sufferer, the disease can produce a variety of symptoms that affect the skin. However, many do develop skin conditions or symptoms as a result of thyroid disorder:
Dry, rough skin: Dry, coarse skin is probably the most common skin-related symptom of thyroiditis or hypothyroidism. The thyroid regulates the operation of the body and an underactive thyroid will inhibit the production of oils. This will cause the skin to become very dry.
Pale skin: An underactive thyroid, underproducing the hormones that regulate energy level and efficiency, will cause metabolism to slow down. All bodily processes run more slowly, including blood circulation. The skin can become pale when blood circulation is slowed by an underactive thyroid.
Jaundice: A yellow tinge to the skin, called jaundice, sometimes appears in infants with an underactive thyroid. There are few visible symptoms of hypothyroidism in infants, so it is important to check for jaundice and look into any suspected illness.
Red, swollen skin: Red, swollen skin is a sign of inflammation. Physicians will commonly prescribe an antibiotic to kill the infection causing inflammation of the thyroid and aspirin or ibuprofen to reduce the inflammation.
- Eczema: People with hypothyroidism may be likely to develop eczema, a condition in which the skin becomes dry and itchy and cracks or splits open into irregular wounds that often "weep" or ooze liquid. The eyelids and hands may become puffy and swollen, and wounds on the skin can take a long time to heal.
Yellow Bumps: Raised, yellowish bumps can appear in children whose hypothyroidism has gone undetected and reached a more advanced state. The yellow bumps are an accumulation of cholesterol that has occurred because the slowed metabolism is not removing enough cholesterol from the blood. Children who suffered from untreated hypothyroidism may be shorter than their peers and often appear to be bloated.