Borderline thyroid test

[campy67]

Hi thanks for the add , I had a blood test 3 months ago for various things and my thyroid came back as a bit high My Doctor said take another one which i did a couple of days ago and it came back borderline he now wants another one done in 6 months is this normal or should i go and see him as 6 months seems to long to wait any advice please thanks .

[Hare-bell]

It seems too long. I am only new to this too and started on 25mgs about 3 months ago, then was asked to go in for a blood test. My dose was increased to 50 mgs but when I went back to the surgery and got a different doctor he told me to stay on my current dosage for a year!! I got talking to a friend recently who told me that a blood test should be done every 6-8 weeks to assess the levels and required treatment. That is why I am going to request another blood test asap as I am feeling really not well still, even though I am taking 50mgs of thyroxine every day. I think maybe you should question this as 6 months seems a bit much. At least perhaps get a second opinion from another GP if you can

[campy67 in reply to Hare-bell]

Ok thanks i will cannot see it changing much in 6 months do you think some Doctors dont like treating borderline cases ?.also ive had 2 blood tests done going to see him to get some more answers thanks .

[Hidden in reply to campy67]

Post you blood test results with the ranges for people to look at. Did you take the test first thing, fasting?

[campy67 in reply to Hidden]

No fasting took it in the morining thanks .

[Peanut31 in reply to Hare-bell]

Hi

The normal procedure on Levothyroxine is that you start on 50mcg for 6 weeks, you then have a blood test to see how your TSH, T3 & T4 results are, (don’t take your Levothyroxine before your blood test, and make sure it’s done first thing in the morning, no eating and water only) you then increase your Levothyroxine by 25mcg every 6 weeks and repeat the process.

For us to feel normal our TSH should be around 1 or below and T3 & T4 in the upper figures of the lab ranges.

Best Wishes

Peanut31

[Hare-bell in reply to Peanut31]

Thank you. I am learning from things here too.

[greygoose in reply to Hare-bell]

That doctor was very wrong. You should be tested 6-8 weeks after a change in dose. He should not be leaving people on a starter dose for a whole year! Because 50 mcg is a starter dose, unless you are over 50 (which the NHS considers to be 'very old') or have a heart condition. Testing is once a year when your levels and your dose are stable. Can you see a different doctor when you go back?

[Hare-bell in reply to greygoose]

Yes I am going to try and find another doctor next time at my surgery. I told that last doc that I could feel a tight mass in my neck and throat area and he said that I was probably just concentrating on my throat because I had been told that I had been diagnosed with hypothyroidism. He didn't check it or feel for any lumps either. I think he thought I was wasting his time. It took me quite a bit of courage to go in and tell him about it as I don't like making a fuss about anything and it was my daughter who urged me to go to the doctor about this.

[greygoose in reply to Hare-bell]

Oh, they love to make out it's 'all in your head'! You asked, above, if doctors dislike treating borderline cases of hypo. Frankly, they just don't like treating hypo at all!

[greygoose]

When you say your 'thyroid', do you mean the TSH? The thing is, TSH can be elevated for reasons other than hypothyroidism. A bug, or something can cause your TSH to rise. That's why they don't diagnose you straight away on seeing a high TSH, but give it time to go down if it's going to. Yours did go down, and that's why they're making you wait for another test. But, I agree, 6 months is too long. 3 months would be adequate. But, these tests cost money, and that's why they don't like doing them.

But, what exactly is 'borderline'? Do you ask for print-outs of your test results? If not, you should. If you live in the UK, it is your legal right to have a print-out - not just a verbal quote, because that way, mistakes can creep in. Plus, with a print-out, you're sure to get the ranges, as well as the results, which is very important. So, ask at the reception for a print-out of your last two tests, and let's have a look. Sometimes, a doctor's idea of 'borderline' is not realistic!

[Hidden]

There should be are tests then a start of treatment. It would be good if you ask reception for a copy of blood results. list symptoms and give us your pulse and temp and we should be able to help further.

[Valarian]

It depends. It would be easier to answer your question if we knew which result was high, as you could be borderline hypo or hyper. You surgery should be able to give you a printout of both sets of results, including the ranges used for the tests (typically in brackets after the results).

Thyroid levels fluctuate, and sometimes slightly elevated thyroid hormone levels (FT3, FT4) resolve themselves without intervention. They may also be a sign of a predominately hypO condition called Hashimoto’s Disease, which fluctuates between hyper and hypo episodes - again, treatment may not be required during a hypER phase.

[campy67 in reply to Valarian]

Ok sorry for the confusion i posted twice new to this game lol

[Hidden]

Oh, I just replied to your other post that says almost the same thing! (healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

Shall I post it over on here and you can then delete the other post? Confusion otherwise!

[Hidden]

Decided to copy the main part of my post over from your other thread anyway. You have already had some good advice, but the more the merrier!

The most common reason for having these regular tests with no action taken is that you are what is called "Subclinical", meaning that one of the results - usually the TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) - is abnormal, while the others are within range.

Post the results on here, with the reference ranges - Usually in brackets after the result.

For example, two of my results (from last March):

TSH 5.94 mU/L (0.27-4.20)

Free T4 13.5 pmol/L (11.0-25.0)

You can see from this that TSH is above the top of the reference range of 0.27-4.2, but T4 is inside the range at 13.5, although it is at the low end. It is called "Subclinical" hypothyroidism because the actual thyroid hormone level is inside the range but TSH is too high.

The doctors are using a wait and see approach because sometimes things will settle down. For example if you are a pregnant woman or have had a baby fairly recently, the thyroid trouble can often correct itself. But most doctors don't seem to understand thyroid conditions very well (apparently very little is taught about it in medical school). The usual policy is to wait until the TSH is over 10 - unless you as the patient take action.

If you feel very unwell the best thing is to ask the doctor for a clinical trial. A written bullet list of your main symptoms and how they are affecting your life is a good idea. You can either give it to the doctor or take it with you to help remember.

What are your symptoms? That should also give us some idea of what is going on. Do you have any antibody results for example. Are any of your other blood results abnormal (Usually the lab puts a * by that result and maybe "High" or "Low" next to it).