Hi there, I've already done a post for my results but now it's my mum's turn! She's currently recovering from thyroid eye disease and these are her latest results.
As you can see, her GP didn't test her T3 levels, which seems crazy when she's been so unwell. She also had to chase for ages just to get this test done. They did them routinely when she was having hospital treatment but now they seem to be leaving her to it unless she requests a test.
She's on 75mg of Levothyroxine daily. I just want to find if her levels look okay or if she needs to get the test repeated to find out her T3 levels too. Thank you in advance.
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Jojozo
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Her TSH is much to high for someone on thyroid hormone replacement. it should be 1 or under, or wherever makes her feel well. So, we don't need to see her FT3 level to know that she needs an increase in dose. Her FT4 is low, should be at least over mid-range.
Not as far as she knows but she's never had any tests done other than the regular thyroid checks. She was diagnosed with an underachieve thyroid in her early 30s after years and feeling unwell and has been on medication ever since.
For full Thyroid evaluation yiur Mum needs 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
Recommended on here that 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)
Is this how she does her tests?
Ask GP to test vitamins (and antibodies if never been tested)
Private tests are available. Thousands on here forced to do this as NHS often refuses to test FT3 or antibodies Or vitamins
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
On Levothyroxine TSH should be under 2, most people need it under one
She is likely to needs a 25mcg dose increase in Levothyroxine. Bloods should be retested 6-8 weeks after each dose increase
Official NHS guidelines saying TSH should be between 0.2 and 2.0 when on Levothyroxine
(Many of us need TSH nearer 0.2 than 2.0 to feel well)
New NHS England Liothyronine guidelines November 2018 clearly state on pages 8 & 12 that TSH should be between 0.4-1.5 when treated with just Levothyroxine
Sore swollen eyes as result of autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) is pretty common
About 90% of all hypothyroidism in Uk is due to Hashimoto's.
Low vitamins are especially common with Hashimoto's. Food intolerances are very common too, especially gluten. So it's important to get TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested at least once .
Thank you, that is in incredibly helpful. I'll pass that all on to her. I think the best thing to do would be to pay for some private tests because her GP doesn't seem very open to doing any additional tests. She makes sure she doesn't take her medication before she has blood tests done (a tip I passed on after reading about it on here!) but I will mention the fasting as well.
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Hi, I wonder if anyone out there can help with my latest blood results?
can anyone help me understand my results
