Dr. Sheldon Rubenfeld Board Certified in Internal Medicine and in Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism

Symptoms of Thyroiditis

Some patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis will not have any signs or symptoms—the only way to identify these patients is by the presence of antithyroid antibodies. Other patients will have goiters and no symptoms. The goiter caused by Hashimoto’s thyroiditis often has a distinctive feel to it; it may be irregular and firm. Sometimes the goiter is very asymmetrical, with one side much larger than the other. Finally, many patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis will have the signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism, with or without a goiter.