Should I increase my thyroxine

[Ter1]

I am 3 weeks pregnant, my tsh was 1.81 and antibodies were 192 in September. The doctors can't give me a blood test till next week and I am worried as I don't want to lose the baby. I currently take 75mg daily and 100mg on the 6th day. Would it be ok to have 100 every two days till next week.

[shaws Administrator]

Phone your surgery and leave a message for your GP saying you are increasing levothyroxine to 100mcg daily due to being 3 weeks pregnant and you'd like a response today.

In the meantime, this is a good info for mums-to-be:

hypothyroidmom.com/what-eve...

[Clutter]

Congratulations, Ter1.

TSH was in the low-normal 0.4-2.0 range recommended but it is recommended that dose be increased by 25-50mcg because of foetal demand until the foetus has developed it's own thyroid gland by 12 weeks.

cks.nice.org.uk/hypothyroid...

______________________________________________________________________________

I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.

[Ter1 in reply to Clutter]

Thanks you clutter and Shaw.

I have spoken to my doctors and they were rubbish I explained that I was worried about risk of miscarriage etc and she said she didn't even know that I needed to increase it and advised me not to.

I have my test on Monday and will get the results on Thursday. Do you think everything will be ok till then, could are harm anything If I increased it to 100 day without checking it first .

[Clutter in reply to Ter1]

Ter1, I don't think it will cause any harm if you increase now. Take your Levothyroxine after your blood draw on Monday.

____________________________________________________________________

I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.

[humanbean]

If your doctor doesn't know that you need to increase your thyroid meds now that you are pregnant, she needs to be shown this, ASAP!

"Pre-existing overt hypothyroidism

How should I manage a woman with pre-existing overt hypothyroidism who is pregnant or planning a pregnancy?

Check thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4) levels before conception if possible, to check adequacy of treatment and to make sure the woman is stable and understands the importance of adherence to levothyroxine.

If the woman has a history of Graves' disease, refer her to an endocrinologist for evaluation.

Advise the woman to consult her GP as soon as she thinks she may be pregnant.

At diagnosis of pregnancy, immediately increase the levothyroxine dose and check TSH and FT4 levels while waiting for referral to a specialist:

The dose should be increased usually by adding at least 25–50 micrograms levothyroxine; the size of the initial increase in dose will depend on the dose the woman is already taking and the TSH and FT4 concentrations. A 30–50% increase in dosage may be required. If there is any uncertainty about what dose to prescribe, seek immediate specialist advice so that there is no delay in the woman receiving an adequate dose of levothyroxine.

Check TSH and FT4 levels every 4 weeks until stabilized, aiming for a TSH concentration in the low-normal range (0.4–2.0 mU/L) and an FT4 concentration in the upper reference range.

Monitor TSH and FT4 levels:

Every 4 weeks during titration of levothyroxine.

Every 4 weeks during the first trimester, and again at 16 weeks and at 28 weeks of gestation, in a woman who is on a stable dose of levothyroxine.

More frequent tests may be appropriate on specialist advice."

Source : cks.nice.org.uk/hypothyroid...

At the link I've given above, click on the subject titles on the left hand side of the page. Various blue tabs show up. Click on each one that is relevant to you, and pay particular attention to the bits about being pregnant with pre-existing overt hypothyroidism.

Since the information comes from the NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries, your doctor should KNOW this stuff! It makes me wonder how many hypothyroid and pregnant women she has incorrectly treated in the past. It doesn't bear thinking about.