What Does Thyroid Disease Look Like in Kids with Down Syndrome?
Children with Down syndrome are already fighting a big battle, but they can be more susceptible to other ailments, as well. Thyroid conditions are just one example. Recognizing the signs can be tricky, especially since your child’s thyroid can be underactive, overactive, or there may be other issues.
Thyroid Disease Can Be Tough to Recognize
There’s a lot that changes for all kids from day to day, even for kids with Down syndrome. Some of the characteristics that are part of Down syndrome could “hide” thyroid symptoms. Also, if your child has other health issues, those could be more obvious or demanding than the issues she’s having with her thyroid.
Unexpected Weight Changes May Be at Play
Thyroid issues tend to come with dramatic weight changes because of how the thyroid regulates some of the aspects that go along with both weight loss and weight gain. If your child’s weight changes dramatically in one direction or another and there were no plans for that to happen, her thyroid may be driving some of those changes.
Kids with Thyroid Disease Might Be Fatigued
If your child’s thyroid is a little sluggish, meaning that she’s tending toward hypothyroidism, she might be a lot more tired than usual. It might be tough for her to wake up in the morning or from naps. You might also start to notice that even if she’s sleeping more than usual, she seems to have far less energy than she usually does.
Temperature Intolerance Is Common
Something else that the thyroid helps to regulate is internal temperature. When the thyroid isn’t working the way that it should, your child may start to feel more uncomfortable than usual in warmer temperatures or she may express that she’s cold far more often. For instance, you might perceive the room as warm, but your child wants to bundle up.
Your Child Could Have Trouble Concentrating
Because there’s so much that the thyroid affects, there are also symptoms that might be more difficult to attribute to a medical issue. For example, you might start to notice that your child is having more trouble concentrating than usual. That can be because of learning difficulties associated with Down syndrome, but it can also be associated with thyroid changes.
Your child may have more going on in addition to Down syndrome and thyroid issues. Having pediatric home care providers helping you to keep up with all of the details involved in her care can make a huge difference in making sure you’re on top of everything.
If you are considering wellness coordination in Greenfield, IN, please call the caring staff at RSI Cares. Serving Greater Indianapolis Area. Call for Immediate Info & Assistance: 317-471-0750.
As a practicing Registered Nurse, Etelka was keenly aware of a void in quality patient care that could be provided in the home. She embarked upon a journey to develop a home health care agency that would exceed all expectations and become a trusted partner to physicians and patients.
A Distinguished Career From Nurse to Director of Nursing to President of Home Services Unlimited
Etelka’s distinguished career followed a logical progression to her position as President of Home Services Unlimited. She graduated as a nurse practitioner with a Bachelor of Nursing (RN) in 1972 from Meshgorya University in the Ukraine, close to where she lived with her family. She married her husband Phil in 1973 and decided in 1977 that they would relocate to the United States to be closer to family and to come to this land of opportunity. With an eagerness to continue her budding career, Etelka sat for and passed her Boards in the U.S. in 1979.
A Love and Talent for Working with the Elderly
Etelka began her nursing career in the U.S. at Colonial Crest, now part of Golden Living, where shewasthe In-service Coordinator, the Director of Training and Education and Director of Nursing, a position she occupied for several years.
With a group of partners, she co-founded Adept Corporation, which operated group homes for the mentally challenged. The business was successful and in 1996, Etelka sold her share to return to her roots, caring for the elderly.
In January of 1997, Etelka opened Home Services Unlimited as a fully licensed business to provide home health care. In her quest to learn to do better for her patients, she had already obtained a Masters in Healthcare Administration (MHA) in May of 1990 from the College of St. Francis. As President of Home Services Unlimited, Inc., Etelka guides the trusted, experienced care model Home Services Unlimited uses to continue providing excellent home health care.
Giving Back to the Community of Indianapolis
Volunteering for community services is a high priority for Etelka. Her memberships include the Indiana Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, Executive Women in Health Care and the Indiana Association for Home and Hospice Care, where she is a member of the Board of Directors.
Etelka has also served on the Board of Directors with Hooverwood Home, a highly regarded geriatric facility, since 1997 and as the President for 2005-2006. Through her community work, she has received several awards and accolades, including the Nora McFarland award in 2002, from the Indiana Association of Home and Hospice Care.
Etelka was honored as a “Health Care Hero” by the Indianapolis Business Journal. The issue can be read online here:
http://mags.ibj.com/activemagazine/welcome/html/ibjhch.html.
After clicking on the link, then click on the image of the issue’s front page. After that, you can browse through the issue or click in a box near the top of your internet browser to adjust the page to 17, which is where Etelka’s article appears.
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