Hi this is all new for me...help!

[Sarahqc]

Hi

I would really appreciate views on some recent results of mine:

T4 14.1. TSH 5.7 T 3 3.4 tpo anti bodies 1056 Thyroglobulin anti bodies 300.

I have felt unwell for many years and my Gp keeps saying "it's your anxiety". I've loads of horrible symptoms that seem to tie in with thyroid issues and it sometimes feels like the life's being sucked out of me. I am waiting to see an endocrinologist but am not yet prescribed any medication. Any advice would be really welcomed.

[shaws Administrator]

Welcome to our forum, and that's what usually happens - i.e. we have symptoms for which we haven't a clue why. In the UK the horrendous Guidelines state that the person hasn't to be diagnosed until the TSH is 10, but if we lived in some countries we'd be diagnosed if it reached 3+.

The following is from TUK and it is very clear to a novice that people are hypo with lower TSH's. Our doctors have been told (so I understand) that only the TSH and T4 are to be tested.

You have an Autoimmune Thyroid Disease called Hashimoto's due to your high antibodies. It is the commonest form of hypothyroidism. Going gluten-free can help reduce the attack of the antibodies on your thyroid gland.

If you email [e-mail] and ask for a copy of Dr Toft's Pulse Online article (doctors' magazine) and in it you will read -

excerpt:

"The combination of a normal serum T4 and raised serum TSH is known as subclinical hypothyroidism. If measured, serum T3 will also be normal. Repeat the thyroid function tests in two or three months in case the abnormality represents a resolving thyroiditis.

But if it persists then antibodies to thyroid peroxidase should be measured. If these are positive – indicative of underlying autoimmune thyroid disease – the patient should be considered to have the mildest form of hypothyroidism.

In the absence of symptoms some would simply recommend annual thyroid function tests until serum TSH is over 10mU/l or symptoms such as tiredness and weight gain develop. But a more pragmatic approach is to recognise that the thyroid failure is likely to become worse and try to nip things in the bud rather than risk loss to follow-up.

Treatment should be started with levothyroxine in a dose sufficient to restore serum TSH to the lower part of its reference range. Levothyroxine in a dose of 75-100µg daily will usually be enough."

p.s. if you give results it is helpful to put the ranges too. The reason being that labs differ and it makes it easier to respond. You can present to your doctor copies of the link above plus this from TUK. Your TSH is beyond (I am guessing ) the upper part of the range.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

[SlowDragon Administrator]

When you go for a repeat Thyroid test make sure to get blood test done as early as possible in the morning and fasting. This aims to give the highest TSH result, which is all many GP's mistakenly consider.

Also ask GP to test vitamin D, folate, B12 and ferritin. These are commonly low when we have Hashimoto's. This is because Hashimoto's upsets the function of our gut causing poor nutrient absorption. Or there is a view that poor gut function, also called leaky gut, may be the cause of the Hashimoto's, not the other way around.

This support group is NHS recommended, if GP asks why you want these vitamins tested.

Always make sure to get actual results and the ranges (figures in brackets after the result)

Come back here with a new posting and members can advise.

If you have any obvious gut issues already ask GP for coeliac test, if not probably best to just try strictly Gluten free for 3-6 months to see if it helps. If it does stick on it.

Don't be surprised if GP is unaware of Hashimoto's connection to gut, gluten or low vitamins.