Medicheck results 28/2/2019

Hi

Above results.

CRP High Sensitivity 1.43mg/L

Iron 39.6 (13-150)

Vitamins:

Serum folate 7.74ug/L (3.89-19.45)

Active b12 89pmol/L (37.5-188)

Vit d 94.8nmol/L (50-175)

Thyroid Stim Hormone 0.139mlu/L (0.27-4.2)

OBVIOUSLY LOW.

Free T3 4.69pmol/L (3.1-6.8)

Free thyroxine 20.1pmol/L (12-22)

Thyroglobulin 47.5kU/L (0-115)

Thyroid Peroxidase 9 (0-34)klU/L

Docs note re TSH:

... Thyroxine may be too high

... If free of symptons retest in three months

... If feel thyroid may be overactive, discuss with my doctor

... Maybe a bone density scan

Would welcome any comments please.

Thank you.

[greygoose]

What are you taking, and how much?

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Hi I'm taking levothyroxine 75mg

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

OK, so you have a conversion problem. Your FT4 is at the top of the range, but your FT3 is a tad under mid-range.

So…

… it's all very well saying that your thyroxine is too high, but if you reduce it, the FT3 will go down, and you will get worse - it's low T3 that causes symptoms. So, if you reduce your dose, you will need some T3 to replace it.

… are you free of symptoms? Even if you are, testing in three months probably won't change anything unless something is done to improve your conversion. For that, you might want to increase your B12 and folate, a little. Your vit D is good. Have you had your ferritin tested? Your iron is low, but you do need to see your ferritin. Are you on a low-calorie diet?

… you're not likely to have an over-active thyroid (that was a pretty silly thing to say) because your thyroid is under-active, and you are taking levo. You could be over-medicated, but you're not because your FT3 is under mid-range.

… a bone density scan? Always interesting to have one, but if he's suggesting that you have osteoporosis because your TSH is low, then he's barking completely up the wrong tree. TSH is nothing to do with bones.

Finally, it's unlikely that you have Hashi's, because your antibodies are low. But, people have been known to have Hashi's without having high antibodies. So, we can't say anything for certain, there.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Apologies yes I do have ferritin results today 39.6ug/L (13-150).

I have been eating far less calories since beg Dec. Lost two stone and feel much better as I was overweight.

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

39 is much too low. Are you vegetarian.

Be careful with low-calorie diets because you need calories to convert - along with everything else. And, you do have poor conversion, there, so perhaps you aren't eating enough.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Been vegetarian for a few years but ate meat recently as my health is paramount. However hard to find purely grass fed meat and chickens eat corn/grain so stopped it.

Thank you for your help. Can I ask what action you think I should take.

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

What I think and what is possible are possibly two different things.

You need to raise your ferritin by some means, and they say that the best way is to eat liver once a week. Not ideal for a vegetarian.

You need to reduce your FT4 and raise your FT3. And, maybe increasing your ferritin will help with that. Also, have you tried selenium? Perhaps increasing your calorie intake will help. But, if all else fails, the only thing you can do is get T3/liothyronine prescribed (difficult) or procure your own on-line (increasingly difficult).

Those are the things you need to do to feel well. How much you are prepared/able to do is entirely up to you.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Thank you, much appreciated.

I actually don't feel unwell...

They're just statistics to me but of course important ones

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

If you feel well, then there's no problem.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Thank you greygoose but I am a worrier.....

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

Worrying never helped anything. And actions speak louder than words. So, perhaps actually doing something about your ferritin would stop you worrying?

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Yes of course I will.

What scares me the most is when I read about cognition being affected.....

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

Affected by what? Low T3? Yes, that can happen because the brain needs lots of T3. Do you feel your cognition is being affected?

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Bit forgetful but no more than anyone else I know. What bothers me is if I develop dementia. So worried about it.

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

I don't think dementia comes on over-night. There will be warning signs. At which point, you check your labs and make sure your FT3 is in the right place. However, it is low at the moment, so if you're that worried about it, you should do something about your FT3.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Would dementia brought on by this be reversible?

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

Well, it wouldn't really be dementia, would it? It would be dementia-like symptoms brought on by insufficient T3. But, yes, it would be reversable.

[Hidden in reply to greygoose]

Thank you and for my endless questions....

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

You're welcome. Ask as many questions as you like. I may not be always able to answer them, but someone else on here undoubtedly will.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

By iron result, do you mean ferritin?

This level looks rather low. Increasing iron rich foods plus a daily good quality vitamin C may help improve iron absorption

Folate also slightly low

Supplementing a good quality daily vitamin B complex, one with folate in not folic acid may be beneficial.

chriskresser.com/folate-vs-...

B vitamins best taken in the morning after breakfast

Recommended brands on here are Igennus Super B complex. (Often only need one tablet per day, not two). Or Jarrow B-right

If you are taking vitamin B complex, or any supplements containing biotin, remember to stop these 7 days before any blood tests, as biotin can falsely affect test results

endo.confex.com/endo/2016en...

endocrinenews.endocrine.org...