Thyroid Structure, Hormones, Development, Disease

Thyroid gland location and overall shape

The thyroid gland is located in the front of the neck, below the Adam’s apple, lying against and around the larynx and trachea. It surrounds the cricoid and tracheal cartilages and moves up and down with swallowing due to its attachments to the thyroid and cricoid cartilages. Overall, the thyroid has a butterfly-shaped (or H-shaped) form composed of two lobes—left and right—connected by a narrow band of tissue called the isthmus. In adults it weighs about 25 g, with each lobe roughly 5 cm long, 3 cm wide, and 2 cm thick, and an isthmus about 1.25 cm in height and width. The gland’s shape can vary: a third pyramidal lobe may extend upward from the isthmus, and other accessory structures or variants may occur.

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Thyroid lobes and isthmus anatomy

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