Objective: We aimed to discuss the diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties of Riedels thyroiditis case which is a rarely seen disease of thyroid gland.
Case: A 43-year-old female patient who admitted to the hospital with a firm, painless midline mass, and shortness of breath. Diagnosis was made by radiographic imaging, fine needle aspiration biopsy, tru-cut biopsy and open biopsies. Surgical treatment was not planned due to extensive extrathyroidal spread of the disease. Systemic steroid treatment was decided to be initiated to the patient, who had tracheotomy due to tracheal compression, after examining the medical treatment protocols reported in the literature. A distinct decrease in the size of the thyroid mass was noticed at follow up.
Conclusion: Riedel thyroiditis is diagnosed in the presence of histopathological findings as well as radiological and physical examination findings. For diagnosis, primarily, it is important that the disease is suspected and that thyroid malignancies are excluded. Surgical treatment is not recommended because of the high morbidity except for the symptoms of compression, but there is also no standard medical treatment protocol. Therefore, reporting and discussion of the treatment choices of Riedels thyroiditis on an individual basis will be beneficial.
Key words: Riedels, thyroiditis, thyroid gland
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