Graves' disease is a disease of the thyroid gland. If your doctor has told you that you have
Graves' disease, it means that your thyroid gland is being tricked by your immune system into
overproducing thyroid hormone. You will become hyperthyroid because you will have too much thyroid
hormone in your body.
In Graves' disease, your immune system responds to your thyroid gland as if it were a group
of foreign cells. As a result, it sends antibodies to bind with thyroid cells. This is called
an autoimmune condition, because your immune system is responding to your own cells. In Graves'
disease, the antibodies that bind to thyroid cells cause the cells to produce more thyroid hormone.
The thyroid cells respond as if the antibodies are TSH messages, which increase thyroid hormone
production. As a result, too much hormone gets released into your blood, and you develop hyperthyroidism.
Graves' disease results from an interaction
between one's genetic makeup (heredity) and the immune system. For reasons that are not
understood, the immune system produces an antibody that stimulates the thyroid gland to produce
too much thyroid hormone. This is most common in women between the ages of 20 and 40, but can
occur at any age in both genders. When Graves' disease occurs, the thyroid gland enlarges
(called a goiter) and makes more and more thyroid hormone, resulting in the symptoms listed
above. Some people also develop eye problems (called Graves' ophthalmopathy),such as dry,
irritated, or red eyes, and double vision. Others develop swelling behind the eyes that causes
the eyes to protrude, although this is less common. In its most severe form, patients with
Graves' ophthalmopathy can develop inflammation of the optic nerves, which can result in
loss of vision.
