haven't been taking the right dosage of my thyroxine

[Elizabeth42]

Hi, I was clearing out my medication cupboard and noticed that from 2016 I was only taking 100mg when I was supposed to be taking 200mg when I spoke to the doctor about it he said the last blood test that was done in July was normal so keep taking that but I am feeling really poorly and am thinking about seeing a private endoclogist would he do a more in depth blood test or would I do better to have it done with one of the companies on here.

my results were TSH 0.29 miu/l 0.27-4.20

FT4 20.5 pmoi/L 12.0-22.0

are these with in the normal range?

Many thanks Elizabeth

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Elizabeth42

You have given the reference ranges alongside the results so yes, they are within range. They are actually excellent results for a treated hypo patient, but they were from July and your levels could be different now. Also, to get the full picture you need FT3 testing at the same time as the others so you can see if you are converting T4 to T3 well enough. And if you've not had them tested then TPO and TG antibodies would be useful, as well as Vit D, B12, Folate and Ferritin.

[MaisieGray]

The "normal" - or more accurately - reference range, is indicated by the numbers after the result eg TSH 0.29 miu/l 0.27 - 4.20. So yes, both your TSH and FT4 results are within range. Being in range though, is not the same as being right, or optimal for you; but those results look good, and certainly don't seem to indicate that you need to take twice your current dose. But what those results are not telling you is what is level of the active thyroid hormone T3, nor therefore, how well you are converting your T4 to T3, which might help clarify why you are feeling poorly. A private endo can carry out testing for you, but a cheaper option might be to have a comprehensive set of tests by one of the labs mentioned here, and used by many of us. You could then post your results in a new thread, for members to comment: thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

[Nanaedake]

The results you've given show that FT4 is within the normal range but you've got no FT3 reading which could help to verify normal levels. You certainly don't need 200mcg with those results. Did you switch Levothyroxine brand? You may not absorb all brands in the same way even though they are meant to be bioequivalent.

Have you had vitamin levels tested?

[SlowDragon Administrator]

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 plus both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested. Also extremely important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Low vitamin levels are extremely common, especially if Thyroid antibodies are raised or if under medicated

All thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and fasting. Do not take Levothyroxine dose in the 24 hours prior to test, delay and take immediately after blood draw. This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)

Private tests are available. Thousands on here forced to do this as NHS often refuses to test FT3 or antibodies

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

Medichecks Thyroid plus ultra vitamin or Blue Horizon Thyroid plus eleven are the most popular choice. DIY finger prick test or option to pay extra for private blood draw. Both companies often have special offers, Medichecks usually have offers on Thursdays, Blue Horizon its more random