I am new here and am hoping for some help with Medicheck results please.
Diagnosed Hypothyroid 10 years ago and have been on 50 mcg Levothyroxine for years.
As many of you have, I have begged for a full thyroid panel for years as I have felt so unwell. No surprise that I have never been allowed to have one.
Finally ordered a Medicheck test and below are the results:
Inflammation
CRP HS X 9.34 mg/L (Range: < 5)
Iron Status
Ferritin 109 ug/L (Range: 13 - 150)
Vitamins
Folate - Serum 12.98 ug/L (Range: > 3.89)
Vitamin B12 - Active 102.000 pmol/L (Range: 37.5 - 188)
Vitamin D 107 nmol/L (Range: 50 - 175)
Thyroid Hormones
TSH 3.8 mIU/L (Range: 0.27 - 4.2)
Free T3 3.54 pmol/L (Range: 3.1 - 6.8)
Free Thyroxine 15.500 pmol/L (Range: 12 - 22)
Autoimmunity
Thyroglobulin Antibodies X 487.000 kU/L (Range: < 115)
Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies X 380 kIU/L (Range: < 34)
It would seem I have full blown Hashimoto's - which I suspected. Feel like suing all the doctors who have refused me full tests all these years!
I would be really grateful for some help with the results and any ways I can help myself.
Many thanks,
Written by
Amador
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Thyroglobulin Antibodies X 487.000 kU/L (Range: < 115)
Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies X 380 kIU/L (Range: < 34)
CRP HS X 9.34 mg/L (Range: < 5)
Yes, your raised antibodies confirm Hashi's, and this could possibly be the reason why your CRP-hs is raised. This particular CRP test is high sensitivity and I expect Medichecks has commented on your level.
Hashi's is where the immune system attacks the thyroid and gradually destroys it.
Most doctors dismiss antibodies as being of no importance and know little or nothing about Hashi's and how it affects the patient, test results and symptoms. You need to read, learn, understand and help yourself where Hashi's is concerned.
You can possibly help reduce the antibodies by adopting a strict gluten free diet which has helped many members here, although there are no guarantees it's worth trying for 3-6 months.
Gluten contains gliadin (a protein) which is thought to trigger autoimmune attacks so eliminating gluten can help reduce these attacks.
You don't need to be gluten sensitive or have Coeliac disease for a gluten free diet to help.
Supplementing with selenium l-selenomethionine 200mcg daily can also help reduce the antibodies, as can keeping TSH suppressed.
Hashi's and gut absorption problems tend to go hand in hand and can very often result in low nutrient levels or deficiencies. Yours don't seem too bad. Optimal levels are:
Vit D - 100-150nmol/L
B12 - for Serum B12 at least 550pg/ml, 1000pg/ml for older people. For Active B12, below 70 suggests testing for B12 deficiency, yours at 102 is a good result.
Folate - at least half way through range, there is no range with yours but it's a pretty good result.
Ferritin - half way through range, although I've seen it said 100-130 is a good level for females.
TSH 3.8 mIU/L (Range: 0.27 - 4.2)
Free T3 3.54 pmol/L (Range: 3.1 - 6.8)
Free Thyroxine 15.500 pmol/L (Range: 12 - 22)
have been on 50 mcg Levothyroxine for years
You are currently undermedicated and need an increase in your dose of Levo. 25mcg immediately, retest in 6-8 weeks and if necessary a further increase of 25mcg. When on Levo only, the aim of a treated hypo patient generally is for TSH to be 1 or lower with FT4 and FT3 in the upper part of their ranges if that is where you feel well.
If your GP is reluctant to raise your dose of Levo, refer to the article written by Dr Toft (leading endocrinologist and past president of the British Thyroid Association) for Pulse magazine (the magazine for doctors), where he said
"The appropriate dose of levothyroxine is that which restores euthyroidism and serum TSH to the lower part of the reference range - 0.2-0.5mU/l. In this case, free thyroxine is likely to be in the upper part of its reference range or even slightly elevated – 18-22pmol/l. Most patients will feel well in that circumstance. But some need a higher dose of levothyroxine to suppress serum TSH and then the serum-free T4 concentration will be elevated at around 24-28pmol/l. This 'exogenous subclinical hyperthyroidism' is not dangerous as long as serum T3 is unequivocally normal – that is, serum total around T3 1.7nmol/l (reference range 1.0-2.2nmol/l).*"
*He recently confirmed, during a public meeting, that this applies to Free T3 as well as Total T3. You can obtain a copy of the article by emailing Dionne at
tukadmin@thyroiduk.org
print it and highlight question 6 to show your doctor.
Thank you so much for all the information and links. I have already started researching what I can do to help myself.
The medichecks doctor did indeed comment on the CRP-hs test - his exact words were :
"Your CRP is slightly increased, this is not a cause for concern" ! : D I have already sent him an email regarding this and his other comments, such as "I am pleased to report that overall your results are healthy however there are a few areas which are worth discussing" and suggested I should re-test in 3 months.
I will definitely try going gluten free.
Just so annoyed at all the doctors' negligence and that I have only just found out I have Hashimoto's.
I will ask for Dr. Toft's article. Is it also possible to obtain a list of doctor's who are actually helping people with thyroid problems? My GP always patronises me and treats me like an idiot when I dare to suggest that the reason I feel so ill could be to do with my underactive thyroid.
I have 4 brazil nuts each day - might that be enough selenium do you think?
Thank you again for all your help - lots of reading to do! : D
"Your CRP is slightly increased, this is not a cause for concern" !
I find that quite concerning and rather negligent. The test Medichecks to is CRP-hs and they describe this as
"C-Reactive Protein (CRP) is an inflammation marker used to assess whether there is inflammation in the body - it does not identify where the inflammation is located. High Sensitivity CRP (CRP-hs) is a test which is used to detect low-level inflammation which is thought to damage blood vessels which can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
Raised levels are a risk factor for cardio-vascular disease."
So even if it was a basic CRP inflammation marker test, their comment is less than adequate considering it's over range. They should have written something along the lines of re-testing and if it remains elevated then investigation as to the cause of the inflammation is suggested.
As for the high-sensitivity part of this test - I would call them out of their comment of "Raised levels are a risk factor for cardio-vascular disease" - where is their further comment on this!
Did they comment on the raised antibodies at all?
Is it also possible to obtain a list of doctor's who are actually helping people with thyroid problems?
Yes, ask Dionne for the list of thyroid friendly endos when you send for Dr Toft's article. See who you can travel to and ask on the forum for feedback by private message on any possibilities.
I have 4 brazil nuts each day - might that be enough selenium do you think?
Unfortunately, despite popular belief, there is an indeterminate amount of selenium in Brazil nuts. The package needs to state "Grown in selenium rich soil" for there to be any at all. And really, you need to know the actual area they have been grown in to know if the soil contains a good amount or just a small amount.
So really, 4 brazil nuts could give you too much selenium if they've come from an area with excellent content in the soil, or they could contain nothing. The only way to know what you are getting is to supplement.
In my email to the doctor I did point out that 9.34 was quite high and inflammation very dangerous. Especially as I already have CHD! Didn't see their explanation for CRP otherwise I would have also pointed this out to him.
If he replies to my email I will certainly mention it.
Will purchase a Selenium supplement and stop the nuts as I have just read that nuts and seeds are not good to eat with Hashi's anyway : /
Well at least they mentioned them, but there was no advice. I think they must have numerous doctors commenting on results, some give much more detail than others.
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