In the last 15 years, the number of men from Sörmland who have received treatment for hypothyroidism, also called hypothyroidism, has increased by 67 percent.
In 2006, 1,169 men were treated in Sörmland, in 2020 1,957 men were treated.
Across the country, the number of men treated has increased by 75 percent since 2006.
More women in Sörmland are also being treated for thyroid problems.
Since 2006, prescribing has increased by 40 percent.
According to the Swedish Thyroid Association, however, the disease is associated with women and there is therefore a risk that many men do not seek or receive the care they need.
Unequal care in the country
Thyroid disease is considered one of the most common chronic diseases in Sweden.
In 2019, almost half a million people were treated for hypothyroidism.
About the same number were treated for diabetes.
Despite this, there is no national program or quality register for thyroid disease.
Something that leads to unequal care in the country as all regions set their criteria for diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
- Sweden's Municipalities and Regions, SKR, urgently need to develop a national care program and a quality register also for hypothyroidism.
Only then can we receive more equal care and improve the quality of life for the women and men who are affected, writes Anna Bergkvist, chairman of the Thyroid Association, in a press release.