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Show Advice on Your Health By Merrit Rthbeifl, Editor. Journal Arnf jean Mtfiol Association Goiter, the enlargement of the thyroid gland, occurs in two forms. The one, high In the throat, Is easily removed; the other, deeper In the chest. Is dangerous and difficult to take out. The thyroid gland lies In the front of the neck. Two large lobes of the gland lie on each side of the windpipe. A small portion of tissue, called the isthmus, lies across the windpipe connecting the two lobes. An ordinary goiter Is easy to reach during surgical operation and can be removed without considerable con-siderable difficulty to the modern mod-ern surgeon. There are certain forms of goiter, however, which are so low In the neck that they eventually drop down and grow behind the breast bone or sternum. This type is called Intrathoracic In-trathoracic colter, because It Is actually within the chest. The danger from such a goiter results not only from the pressure pres-sure on the windpipe, which causes that- organ to be curved or narrowed, but also from the manner In which the goiter presses on the veins Ih the neck, preventing the return of the blood from the head and neck to the heart and the circulation. - Because of these dangers, persons per-sons with large goiters growing deep In the neck and chest have Interference with breathing- parv. ticularly when there is exertion ' and an unusual demand for air. The voice Is likely to be high" and soprano-like and the breathing breath-ing noisy and whistling. Pressure on the veins results in swelling. ' of the vessel and the accumulation accumu-lation of fluid. Such a goiter could develop excessive ex-cessive activity of lu tissues. The symptoms already - mentioned may be associated with overac tion of the thyroid. Including Vapid heart and loss of weight The removal of such thyroid en- -largement with the gland deep down In the neck or chest demands de-mands extraordinary surgery. Before undertaking such an operation, op-eration, the surgeon makes X-ray pictures to determine the extent of the tissue that is to be removed. re-moved. He has to control completely com-pletely the blood vessels that pass Into the goiter and away from It-He It-He must free the goiter from the surrounding tissues without damaging any of the important structures such as the nerves, blood vessels, or organs which lie in the vicinity. The. surgeon must arrange te take care of the tissues after the enlargement of the thyroid gland Is removed so that they will fill In rapidly, and there will be no secondary infection or complication. compli-cation. With proper care and surgery, the vast majority of patients who require this operative procedure recover.and art able ta live a normal existence, |