Interesting. Two month ago I had half of my (large) thyroid removed. I refused to give also the (normal sized) other half. But I don't think I have Grave-Basedow, definitely no weight loss. I was told I had a huge cyst in the removed part, whatever that means.

If there is a connection it is possibly not that obvious because Dupuytren's is most frequent with men and Grave-Basedow with younger women who usually don't develop Dupuytren's that early.

Dupuytren might be triggered by local inflammations (not sure, just one of many theories). That might be a cconnection because Wikipedia says about Grave's disease: "The "orange peel" skin has been explained by the infiltration of antibodies under the skin, causing an inflammatory reaction and subsequent fibrous plaques".

Wolfgang

Edited 12/30/08 17:41

Hi.Australia Calling
You have raised an interesting topic. I've had Dupuytrens for many years and in the past 7 yrs developed Ledderhose. My daughter in her early 30's had developed an under active thyroid.(hypothyroidism) She will for her remaining lifetime have to take daily, a thyroid hormone. (THYROXINE ) In your case does it mean you now have a non functioning thyroid? (hypothyroidism) These diseases seem to have a strong thread of an immune deficiency. Are there any others on the forum with thyroid problems within the family . I have read a recently published book by Prof. Seegenschmiedt and others" Radiotherapy for Non-Malignant Disorders", where low dose radiotherapy is used for the treatment of Graves Disease, along with Dupuytrens and Ledderhose. Have you had a test for B12 deficiency.This will make you very tired if you are B12 deficient. You dont mention your age but a very large percentage of over 50's are B12 deficient . The body does not take up the vitamin. A simple injection Neo-B12 Injection every 30 to 90 days does wonders. Regards.

Edited 12/31/08 12:38

Underactive Thyroid
My dc started with nodules this past summer. In late summer I was discovered to be borderline low in a blood test and put on a low dose synthroid medication with possible adjustment later. I had all the classical symptoms pryer to this, hair loss, fatigue, etc. It really sounds interesting. I hope it isn't dismissed as cavalierly as the medical community is dismissing the possibility of doing something about this before surgery.
RJ

Hi Nellie - I registered for this forum because of your post. I've been struggling with Lederhose, Dupuytren's and Graves for several years now. I, too, have been wondering if it's all connected and have been doing my best to research this on my own through very limited resources and have found no information that's very revealing (one Italian paper sites a propensity for autoantibodies in Dupuytren's patients and suggested further study).

Do you know what autoantibodies you have? Even though I am hyperthyroid and called a "Graves" patient (and have been using the anti-thyroid tapazole to become euthyroid), the antibodies I have are the antithyroglobulin and antithyroperoxidase antibodies which are normally found in hypothyroid cases (Hashimoto's Thyroiditis).

I have also been managing Thyroid Eye Disease symptoms.

There is so little anyone can currently offer us for so many of these conditions. I actually have Dupuytrens in both hands through my Mother's side (and I am female,) and it's becoming more painful.

I I tend to get way too many viruses and infections, so I'm not keen on the idea of steroids for any purpose.

Today I'm sad because I seem to have another low grade fever and facial rash (though I'm quite sure it's not lupus as I was tested for ANA years ago and was negative.)

I don't believe that a person should try to diagnose or treat themselves, but it seems to me that the doctor's have very little helpful knowledge in these areas. The experts only tell me that I have to wait for all of these conditions to become intolerable and then have surgeries.

Anyway, I would appreciate it very much if we could stay in contact as our cases do seem similar and I'm hungry for knowledge that will help me better handle these conditions. I'm a teacher in NYC.

Hi

I've just joined this site to find info to help my mum with her DC. I'm an acupuncturist and trainee naturopath and will start her on a holistic DC programme as soon as I've done my research. But I just wanted to mention that a lot of people I've come across have had good results with Macca for Thyroid issues. Maybe some other people with this might find it an inexpensive way to help themselves. I haven't researched it myself yet but I'm sure there's plenty of information available if you're interested.

Best wishes
Anne