Thyroid and tracheal constriction

[Seadog66]

Could my under active thyroid be constricting my trachea and causing or contributing to apnea type symptoms? Is this a common problem? I certainly had nodules when last checked 5 years ago but they were small. Now my thyroid feels swollen but I don’t have an obvious goitre. Any thoughts?

[greygoose]

It could, most certainly, be swollen. But, sleep apnea is a hypo symptom, anyway.

[Greekchick]

Hi there,

I had a TT about 11 weeks ago. I have Graves and my goiter was very large and multinodular. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea 2 years prior to my surgery and was successfully treated with a CPAP. My surgeon told me post surgery that the goiter was crushing both my vocal cords and trachea.

Since the surgery, my AHI has gone down from 3 - 4 to .5 and I may actually be able to go off the CPAP now. You can have either hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism and still suffer from sleep apnea if you have a goiter, nodules and swelling. Even though I was hyperthyroid, I had periods of time where my neck would swell and then recede. But exactly what you describe happened to me. Hope this helps! Feel better and positive thoughts to you!

[LowB12]

I noticed choking at night, a lump on the right of my neck and my voice became hoarse. I often needed to press at the side of my neck and tilt my head to talk properly. This all came on in 1-3/52...by the time I had a scan things had improved a lot, they found several small ‘older’ nodules and a larger one thought to have been the issue. It was put down to thyroiditis and a Hashimoto’s flare...

So yes it could be causing your issues

[Seadog66]

Thanks folks.. can't believe the numerous GP visits did not suggest this but feel hopefully that is the problem and will let you know how I get on.