In 1912, Japanese physician Hakaru Hashimoto published the discovery he had made in the thyroid glands of four women: the tissue was riddled with white blood cells – cells that did not belong there – it showed a conversion of glandular tissue into connective tissue and shrinkage. This was the first time Hashimoto had described the most common form of thyroiditis.
Causes: How does this disease develop?
In his publication, Hashimoto described exactly the characteristics that are typical of this type of thyroid disease. The white blood cells are lymphocytes, which are always present where the body’s immune system is active. Sometimes the body classifies its own tissue as foreign and sends its defenses (autoantibodies) to fight there.
This sets in motion – in this case in the thyroid gland – an inflammation (thyroiditis) that destroys the cells and thus their function. The individual glands are replaced by fibrous tissue, causing the thyroid gland to shrink. The longer the disease lasts, the fewer functioning cells remain and hypothyroidism results. Often, it is their symptoms that lead the doctor on the right track. There are also forms in which the thyroid gland tends to increase in size; however, there is also a loss of function.
Who is affected?
It is still not known exactly why – but up to 10 times more women than men are affected, and usually in middle age. It is not uncommon for other medical conditions to be present in which the body takes up arms against its own tissues (e.g., bronchial skin disease, diabetes, celiac disease). These are also called autoimmune diseases.
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis runs in families; in recent years it has been discovered that certain genes are found particularly frequently in sufferers.
