Still under active?

[teach2]

Hi, I am writing on behalf of my 75 year old mother who has been treated with Levothyroxine for hypothyroidism for the past 16 years. Her dosage has never been increased since treatment started (75mg). She has a few other health problems : high blood pressure (perindoperal 2mg), polymyalgia rheumatica (prednisolone10mg), arteriole fibrillation (no meds)prevention of osteoporosis (alendronic acid 75 mg) + calceolaria (2 tablets per day), stroke prevention (pravastatin 20mg). However, she still displays symptoms of hypothyroidism such as hair loss, brittle hair, cold feet, extreme tierdness, breathlessness, intermittent hoarseness of voice, thumping heart and lower abdominal pain on exertion. She has repeatedly visited her GP who maintains that her blood results are normal and no further treatment is required. Can anyone shed any light or advise as she is so lethargic she doesn't feel her life is worth living. She is also recently bereaved as my father died just under a year ago.

Thank you

[puncturedbicycle]

Ugh, sorry, how awful for her and for you. She must get her test results in writing. It shouldn't be an issue. She is entitled to them and the surgery should be able to give her a printout, though they may want to check with the gp first.

That way you can check the results and see if her meds could benefit from tweaking. This is no way to live. x

[Clutter]

Teach, I'm sorry for your and your mother's loss.

Can you get a printout of your mother's thyroid results with the lab ref ranges (the figures in brackets after her results). We'll be able to see then whether your mother is optimally medicated.

Your mother should take her Levothyroxine with water on an empty stomach an hour before or two hours after food and drink. It should be taken 2 hours away from other medication and supplements and 4 hours away from iron and calcium.

Hypothyroid patients are often deficient in ferritin, vitamin D, B12 and folate and these can be worse in the elderly. Symptoms are breathlessness, fatigue, musculoskeletal pain and low mood so it is worth asking her GP to test them as correcting deficiencies will improve her wellbeing.