The surgeons at DeKalb Surgical Associates offer state-of-the-art treatment of various endocrine disorders. Endocrine disorders include abnormalities of the thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal gland, and pancreas.
Thyroid gland abnormalities such as hyperfunction, tumor and cancers may need to be treated surgically. Symptoms may include a sore throat, fatigue, sweating, nervousness, abnormal heart rhythm and weight loss. Sometimes patients may have no symptoms whatsoever but may notice a lump in the neck.
Overactive parathyroid glands can cause increased blood calcium levels and other symptoms such as bone pain, muscle aches, kidney stones, or stomach ulcers. We offer the latest in minimally invasive techniques for surgery of the parathyroid gland.
Adrenal glands are small organs sitting atop each kidney, which produce a variety of important hormones in the body. Occasionally a small tumor in one of these glands will overproduce one of these hormones, causing a variety of symptoms, depending on the hormone produced. Some adrenal tumors do not produce hormones, and may, therefore, cause few symptoms. Adrenal tumors must usually be removed, and most can be removed using laparoscopic techniques, allowing rapid return to regular activities.
The pancreas produces enzymes which help to digest proteins and starches in the intestines. It also produces insulin and some other hormones. Tumors of the pancreas may be without symptoms in the early stages, or there may be some vague abdominal or back pain, jaundice (yellowing of the skin), decreased appetite, or weight loss. Although not all pancreas tumors are able to be surgically removed, this is the preferred treatment when possible.
The spleen has a variety of functions, mainly as a producer of certain types of white blood cells, and as a blood filter. The spleen occasionally must be removed, for instance, in idiopathic thrombocytopenia (low platelet count), or spherocytosis (an unusual type of anemia). In most cases, the removal of the spleen can be done using laparoscopic techniques.
