My endo recently did an antibody test to make sure it was an autoimmune condition causing my thyroid problems. I always ask for copies of results as I have many consultants due to having multiple conditions. He seemed reluctant to tell me but eventually did after I pushed him but said that the level did not matter. It was more the fact that antibodies are present. I would have thought that 690 is pretty high. Sadly I do not have the ranges as I couldn't get a written copy but having looked at tpo ranges in general, I am very high. Does this mean anything or is it correct that the number does not matter????
Many thanks in anticipation to our learned friends who will give me more information in one email than I can extract out of the medical profession in many consultations
M
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Chablis
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Suggest you take a look at this site, it is an excellent reference for Hashimoto's.
690 is probably high, you need to educate yourself. Allopathic docs don't care about the result because they are ignorant and don't have a 'pill for that ill', they just let the thyroid be destroyed and then put you on a replacement dose, stupid. PR
Chablis, I don't think doctors understand the impact autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) can have. My thyroid bloods, TSH, FT4 & FT3 were practically euthyroid but antibodies were 230. Most of my symptoms were hyper although I swung between hyper and hypo. I was told most of my symptoms had to be non-thyroidal because bloods were so normal. 3 months later I had a hemilobectomy to remove a large nodule obstructing breathing. Biopsy was malignant so completion thyroidectomy was scheduled. During the 3 month wait symptoms continued unabated. After completion thyroidectomy they stopped. My thinking is that the Hashi attacks stopped when there was no longer a thyroid gland to target.
If you have antibodies you should be started on levothyroxine. Email louise.warvill@thyroiduk.org and ask for a copy of the Pulse online article by Dr Toft. In it he refers to antibodies and some doctors don't prescribe but he said they should do in order to 'nip things in the bud'. Discuss with your GP.
Chablis,
It is vital you understand the implications of having a high count of antibodies. Conventional medicine is not interested in these conditions and wIll tell you (as they did me) there is no treatment.
However a high antibody count indicates an auto immune response which left unchecked will probably bring havoc and destruction to your body. It is also likely that additional auto immune conditions will develop.
As soon as I was diagnosed with this condition, I went on a mission to educate myself as much as possible. Over time I have managed to calm my body's responses to Hashimotos Thyroiditus by following a gluten free nutrient dense diet (ensuring optimum levels of vitamins), a good sleeping pattern and healthy life style.
I know this all sounds so boring and like an exert from a healthy living magasine but the difference it has made to my symptoms is enormous. This is also the only way to treat the disease. I never lead a terribley bad life style anyway so making a few tweaks here and there wasn't too hard.
A healthy life style is not the answer to everything as I still experience serious health issues which I blame on Levothyroxine but by making these changes and calming my symptoms, I know I have done everything I can to help myself.
Remember knowledge is power Chablis and any positive change is good, no matter how small.
Many thanks to you all. I am already taking 150 of Levo but my tsh has shot up to 7 and my t4 and t3 are also out if range. I take immusupressants for my lupus.
I am hoping that my endo will grab the bull by the horns and work in partnership with my rheumy
I fall into classic hypo traps, adrenal crash 2 years ago, ferritin 5 got ; years, low vit d and b....
Really pushing now for more positive action as for 3 years I have felt as if I am old before my years
High levels of antibodies are indicative of an immune system that has completely lost its way and if nothing is done to reverse this, the thyroid will just be the first victim. Patients with one autoimmune disease often progress to suffer from multiple others. It's like constant “friendly fire” going on inside the body.
Sadly conventional medicine has nothing to offer and is only focused (at best!) in finding solutions to “mitigate”, “alleviate” or “manage” the consequences of autoimmunity, instead of looking into how to calm down that friendly fire and stop it from harming other parts of the body.
Taking T4 or T3 medication is not unlike getting a prosthesis for a missing limb, it's a “workaround”. It helps our bodies to cope in the context of a crucial gland that has stopped working because the friendly fire is constantly attacking it. Is this medication essential? YES of course it is. Is it the end of the story? NO, of course it is not. Conventional medicine (at best!) leaves patients with this workaround treatment leaving the root of the problem untouched.
There’s plenty of information out there about functional medicine approaches to address autoimmunity properly and switch off the mistaken immune response. As a first step I think the book by Datis Kharrazian offers a good introduction (“Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms? When My Lab Tests Are Normal”) or the book by Izabella Wentz (“The Root Cause”) but there are many others which you will see referenced in this forum.
I too had high antibodies when I was diagnosed, and I was told by the first (conventional) doctor who diagnosed me that “autoimmunity has no cure and it is impossible to reduce antibodies”. Thankfully I did not believe this and after a lot of my own self education, through complete changes in my diet (100% gluten free is essential), vitamin D and other supplementation, my last three lab tests have come back with completely negative antibody results. So it is possible, just requires changes, some of which are not necessarily easy… but worth it!
My thyroid results have come back and despite and 25 mg increase in levothyroxine to 150
My tsh is now 10.6 and t4 has gone from 8 to 9.4 (range from10)
Feeling pretty horrid, and I asked gp if this would explain why I feel so horrid and he said no as my results are borderline. He has increased my Levo to 200mg twice a day though....
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