Anyone with hypothyroidism and gout?

[Biochem78]

Hi,

First post, recently diagnosed with hypothyroidism at 40 despite few symptoms after routine tests (TSH was 125!)

Now seems under control with daily 100mg T4 - down to 0.35 TSH after 8 weeks.

However, have had gout attacks in left big toe for last 6 months, high uric acid levels and Dr wants to put me on allopurinol. I've read that the two diseases could be related and allopurinol can affect TSH, T4 and T3 levels. I'm wondering whether to give current meds more time before starting with the allopurinol.

Has anyone experienced similar?

Thanks!

[Angel_of_the_North]

You have HYPOthyroidism, not hyper, so you might want to edit the post

[Biochem78 in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Oops, edited now, thanks.

[jamesal0]

Hi Bio. Yes I (Hypo) suffer some sort of gout although blood tests never confirmed it. Pain in the toe or finger tip for a week from time to time. I was worst before being treated with Thyroxin but still suffered to some extent after. I found it went away completely once I was on NDT. My reading is Levo constricts blood vessels and NDT dilates.

James

[vocalEK]

It is often recommended that along with having thyroid function tests, you have vitamin levels tested. It is very important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12. Levels below optimum can interfere good thyroid function. Get a print out of the results, including the ranges. All need to be at least mid-range.

This study confirms your suspicion of a connection between gout and hypothyroidism.

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/117...

[Biochem78]

Thanks - it was that study I read first of all. There was also one on a much larger population in India showing similar conclusions. However, I'm yet to come across specific treatment regime recommendations, ie whether the gout is likely to clear simply by treating the hypothyroidism, or whether additional meds such as allopurinol are also necessary. I'm a biochemist by profession, so have a good understanding of the literature.

The hypo was picked up as part of my NHS "welcome to your 40s" MOT. All vitamin levels,etc were within expected range, but TSH, T4 and cholesterol way out.

No real hypo symptoms at the time - I'm Male, have a BMI of 23, a full head of hair and the typical energy levels of a father of three small kids!

The gout has been causing me far more issues as I like to run 3 or 4 times a week and it can be very painful!