White cells drop after Carbimazole

[Kari55]

My husband had a blood test done today and his doctor rang him to stop the Carbimazole immediately as his white cells level dropped. Has anyone had this?

[437jd]

Hi it’s all so worrying, for everyone. I’m sure someone will respond to your question soon. It may be that they will start him on an alternative thyroid blocker as he’s reacted to the carb.

[wightmouse]

Yes it happened to me when I was overactive. They may switch him over to Propylthiouracil (PTU) which is another anti thyroid drug. Hopefully this one will suit your husband.

btf-thyroid.org/information...

[Kari55 in reply to wightmouse]

Thank you wightmouse. How long did it take for your white cells to come back to normal?

[wightmouse in reply to Kari55]

Sorry I can't remember. It was years ago. I'm now hypothyroid and memory isn't too good.

[jopratt75]

Hi, I had this a few years ago, it was an allergic reaction to carbimazole, it took a week for my cells to come back to normal following course of IV antibiotics. Hopefully they can try him on an alternative medication.

[Kari55 in reply to jopratt75]

Thanks jopratt75. He is also taking propranolol and this morning we read on the leaflet that it also reduces the blood cells. His doctor didn’t mention it yesterday and he can’t get hold of her today. Did you take propranolol then too?

[jopratt75]

I did yes, I was taken off both. Just to say though that I had a severe reaction to the medication so that is probably why. It is best he checks with doc when he can to see what they say. Have they mentioned an alternative treatment plan instead of carbimazole?

[Kari55 in reply to jopratt75]

They haven’t mentioned anything yet, only that he needs to repeat his test on Tuesday. Seems like never ending.

[jopratt75 in reply to Kari55]

It is a very frustrating illness unfortunately so I can totally understood. Hopefully Tuesdays test will help them get him on a better treatment and he can start to feel better soon.

[Fruitandnutcase]

Has your doctor or endo started him on PTU? Might be worth calling your endo’s secretary tomorrow morning.

I was never given propranolol for my Graves because I have asthma so your husband could do without it. I suppose without it, it just took a bit longer for the palpitations to go in my case but they did go.

[Kari55 in reply to Fruitandnutcase]

Not sure what PTU is? He took propranolol this morning but will skip it in the evening and call the doctor tomorrow. Just when we thought he started getting better, he got a cold and now this

[Valarian in reply to Kari55]

PTU is an alternative anti-thyroid (like Carbimazole). It’s often prescribed for people who have an adverse reaction to Carbimazole.

As others have said, I’m afraid this is a very frustrating condition, and it often feels like one step forwards, then two back !

[Kari55 in reply to Valarian]

Yes, this is exactly how it feels. Very frustrating. Thanks for your response.

[hattersteapar]

Hi, has your husband been ill? with a cold or the like recently whilst on carbizamoleand ?. I have Graves and suffered a sore throat so went to the doctors and was diagnosed with tonsilltus given antibiotics and a blood test and told to stop taking carbizamol and to have another white blood cell check in a week I was then alright to continue with the carbizamol.

I'm sure your husband will be fine and his levels will correct themselves quickly

[Kari55 in reply to hattersteapar]

Thank you for reassuring reply. He has been diagnosed with Graves and been on 40mg Carbimazole for the past 5 weeks. He developed a cold a week ago but didn’t have a sore throat. He had his blood test done and the lab had flagged it up to his endo. I hope his levels go back on track soon.

[Fruitandnutcase in reply to Kari55]

I used to get the odd sore throat when I started on carbimazole. First time I had a white blood cell count done and it was ok. Next time I had a sore throat my GP decided to wait and see. I was happy with that - I did not want to have to stop taking carbimazole - and nothing else happened.

Hope things go well for him. It’s a worry when things happen that you’d rather didn’t.

[Nicbarsal]

I was diagnosed with Graves December 2017 and had extremely sore throat in February so went to A&E as advised for urgent blood test. They tested my blood and neutrophils (white blood cells) were flagged as low but only just outside the range. They gave me penicillin and said I had a strep throat but to come back in 2 days for repeat blood test. Neutrophils were back in range so they said to continue on Carbimazole. I started taking 40mg in December but after blood test in February (prior to the sore throat) my T4 was back in range 12-22 from >100 to 16 so they halved dose to 20mg. I feel Ok more or less. Your husband will hopefully improve soon. Carbimazole lowers your immunity so you'e more susceptible to colds and flu but always get sore throats checked out as it could signal a dangerous white blood cell condition although it's rare. I think white blood cells fluctuate when you'e fighting an infection.

[Kari55 in reply to Nicbarsal]

That’s reassuring. Funny enough, he stopped Carbimazole on Saturday evening and yesterday he felt much better and his cold was improving. I hope he can start taking it again and hopefully the dose is lower.