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Postpartum Thyrotoxicosis

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Thyroid Diseases in Pregnancy
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Abstract

The immune suppression present in pregnancy is gradually lost following delivery and may be followed by exacerbation of autoimmune thyroid disease. Two conditions, namely postpartum thyroid dysfunction (PPTD) and Graves’ disease, are the most frequent causes of thyrotoxicosis during postpartum period. PPTD may present with hyperthyroid state 1–6 months after delivery; hyperthyroidism of PPTD is self-limited and usually needs no treatment. Graves’ disease may initiate, exacerbate, or recur in the first year after delivery and needs to be differentiated from hyperthyroid phase of PPTD. Other causes of thyrotoxicosis in this period are painless sporadic thyrotoxicosis, subacute painful thyroiditis, toxic nodular goiter, and iodine-induced and iatrogenic thyrotoxicosis. Differential diagnosis of various etiologies and their management is discussed in this article.

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Correspondence to Fereidoun Azizi .

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Azizi, F. (2022). Postpartum Thyrotoxicosis. In: Azizi, F., Ramezani Tehrani, F. (eds) Thyroid Diseases in Pregnancy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98777-0_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98777-0_15

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