"Lymphocytic thyroiditis" refers to a condition where the immune system mistakenly attacks the thyroid gland. This can lead to swelling and inflammation in the thyroid, which can affect its ability to produce hormones that control your body's metabolism.
Full definition
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, otherwise known as
chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis, is the most common cause of hypothyroid in the United States (and probably Canada, I'm guessing).
The newer tests for antithyroglobulin antibodies (thyroglobulin autoantibodies) is a pretty good indicator of the presences
of lymphocytic thyroiditis.
It takes a long time for the antibodies to cause enough damage to cause hypothyroidism and some dogs
with lymphocytic thyroiditis never develop hypothyroidism that can be demonstrated through testing.
It can also be used to suppress or treat some types of goiters like chronic or sub
acute lymphocytic thyroiditis or otherwise known as Hashimoto's disease, multinodular kind of goiter, thyroid nodules and management of thyroid cancer.
There is no absolute proof of this for most breeds and so it may be reasonable to breed a dog that has other really outstanding qualities, at least until more is known about
how lymphocytic thyroiditis progresses in the majority of dogs and what the true mechanism of inheritance is.
Moreover, some dogs with
autoimmune lymphocytic thyroiditis may have detectable autoantibodies prior to the development of hypothyroidism (meaning that a dog's thyroid gland may be attacked by the immune system yet not to the point of dysfunction and low hormone production).
At the present time, the lab values do not support a diagnosis of hypothyroidism for your dog but they do support a diagnosis
of lymphocytic thyroiditis, which may eventually lead to hypothyroidism.
Autoimmune thyroiditis (also
called lymphocytic thyroiditis) is the most common cause of primary hypothyroidism in dogs and is known to be an inherited disease.
I am a gluten free vegetarian and avoid soy, even organic non-GMO for a few reasons, including my endocrinologist said it worsens my autoimmune
lymphocytic thyroiditis.
On the other hand, iodine may be one of the potential culprits in the dramatic surge in diagnoses of Hashimoto's thyroiditis, also known as autoimmune thyroiditis or chronic
lymphocytic thyroiditis, which has occurred in recent years.
Hashimoto's thyroiditis is an inflammation of the thyroid gland and sometimes referred to as Hashimoto's disease, chronic
lymphocytic thyroiditis and autoimmune thyroiditis.
Lymphocytic Thyroiditis: Thyroiditis is an inflammation of the thyroid gland.
Lymphocytic thyroiditis: an autoimmune disease causing inflammation and destruction of the thyroid gland, which becomes infiltrated with lymphocytes (white blood cells) and leads to hypothyroidism.
In the dog, hypothyroidism is usually caused by one of two diseases:
lymphocytic thyroiditis or idiopathic thyroid gland atrophy.
Hypothyroidism is almost always caused by one of two diseases:
lymphocytic thyroiditis or idiopathic thyroid gland atrophy.
They point out that vaccines stimulate the immune system, and that many dogs develop a form of thyroid disease where their immune cells attack the thyroid (
lymphocytic thyroiditis) until it is no longer able to function.
Dr. Lorna Kennedy at the University of Manchester's Centre for Integrated Genomic Medical Research in England has found the haplotype (group of genes), which, when present, double the chances of a Ridgeback becoming hypothyroid due to
lymphocytic thyroiditis.
This self - destruction is referred to as autoimmune thyroiditis or
lymphocytic thyroiditis.
In cases of autoimmune thyroid gland disease (
lymphocytic thyroiditis), special blood tests may be sent to a specialty lab to measure levels of abnormal antibodies (antithyroglobulin antibody or autoantibodies to T3 and T4).
Many more dogs have
lymphocytic thyroiditis, measured by the presence of auto antibodies to T3 and T4, than have hypothyroidism.
In one form, the immune system attacks the thyroid gland (autoimmune or
lymphocytic thyroiditis) and a second form in which the gland seems to atrophy for other reasons.
Lymphocytic thyroiditis, probably immune - mediated, is characterized histologically by a diffuse infiltration of the gland by lymphocytes, plasma cells, and macrophages and results in progressive destruction of follicles and secondary fibrosis.
However, the test can never be used alone to confirm a diagnosis of hypothyroidism, because a positive antithyroglobulin antibody titer may occur in euthyroid dogs with early stages of
lymphocytic thyroiditis.