I appear to be allergic to all medications but am getting worse whilst awaiting specialist....any thoughts or guidance please

b12awareness.org/could-it-b...

Hi, Was this free t4? Only guessing because the reference range looks about right..... If the free t4 isn't being converted into free t3, then you would have hypothyroid symptoms even though the free t4 looked high.

T4 is an inert storage hormone and to be of use it has to be converted into t3. You are classed as hyperthyroid when you have very high t3 ... But the reference range generally goes somewhere from 5 to 8. .......

You need a full set of thyroid profile tests ASAP. You need antibodies, free t3. Free t4 and tsh. If the doctor is too incompetent you can get the tests done yourself for around £100... You deal direct with the lab yourself.

If hyperthyroid symptoms are causing problems, this can be alleviated by beta blockers as a temporary fix. What actual symptoms do you have?

Me too. My joints are so painful I feel about 90 not 52. I too was on carbizamole and now PTU and am waiting radioactive iodine treatment x

You could be allergic to the binders and fillers in the meds. The liquid forms of the meds are indicated in such cases but good luck finding them

Hi Sitara, please do check the other ingredients of the tablets. There are a lot that have additional ingredients such as lactose monohydrate, which can cause people a lot of problems, such as inflammation and other signs of allergy. It's ironic and ludicrous in my mind to put such things into drugs when lactose intolerance, for example, can be a serious condition.

An excerpt from Dr Toft of the BTA in an article in Pulse Online (doctors' mag)

4 How does thyroid eye disease manifest itself and how is it treated?

Most patients presenting with the hyperthyroidism of Graves’ disease will have some evidence of thyroid eye disease, ranging from lid retraction with excessive lacrimation in bright light to marked exophthalmos with limited eye movements, diplopia and reduced visual acuity.3

The hyperthyroidism of Graves’ disease and thyroid eye disease are best considered as two separate, organ-specific autoimmune conditions, which frequently coexist. This explains why the eye disease may precede the hyperthyroidism or even occur for the first time years after successful treatment of hyperthyroidism.

The eye disease has its own natural history – a period of deterioration, followed by one of stability and ultimately of some improvement. But the ophthalmopathy will worsen if thyroid function is not controlled – whether through inadequate or excessive treatment.

The eye changes often persist for two to three years after successful treatment of the hyperthyroidism and although there may be significant improvement there is often residual disease, which can be improved by orbital decompression, strabismus surgery and eyelid surgery.

Of all treatments of the hyperthyroidism of Graves’ disease, iodine-131 therapy is associated most often with a worsening of the ophthalmopathy. For that reason it is relatively contraindicated in patients with significant eye disease. For these it may be better to use combination therapy with carbimazole and levothyroxine for the best possible control of thyroid function.

But if radioiodine is the chosen therapy, enteric-coated prednisolone 30-40mg daily should be prescribed for six weeks, as this has been shown to prevent deterioration of ophthalmopathy.

5 Patients with hyperthyroidism often ask for advice on drug treatment versus radioiodine therapy. Can you summarise the pros and cons of each?

The three treatments for hyperthyroidism of Graves’ disease – antithyroid drugs, iodine-131 and surgery – are effective but none is perfect.

Iodine-131 will almost certainly cause hypothyroidism, usually within the first year of treatment, as will surgery, given the move towards total rather than subtotal thyroidectomy.

There is no consensus among endocrinologists about the correct dose of thyroid hormone replacement so patients may prefer to opt for long-term treatment with carbimazole. Standard practice is that carbimazole is given for 18 months in those destined to have just one episode of hyperthyroidism lasting a few months.

But there’s no reason why carbimazole shouldn’t be used for many years in those who do relapse. Any adverse effects such as urticarial rash or agranulocytosis will have occurred within a few weeks of starting the first course.

Iodine-131 treatment for toxic multinodular goitre is the most appropriate choice as hypothyroidism is uncommon. Surgery would be reserved for those with very large goitres and mediastinal compression.

Once hyperthyroidism has developed in a patient with a multinodular goitre, it will not remit and any antithyroid therapy would have to be lifelong.

Can I ask what your 'allergy' symptoms were?