Can someone please explain this? My TPO antibody results came back as 222(above average as I believe average is 100 or below)I called the doctors and they say it's nothing to worry about... would only be an issue if the levels were 1000 and above(which is ridiculous!). My T4 levels are also slightly low.
Family history of hashimotos but had no luck with 2 doctors so far...
My endo told me not to worry about the exact same thing. Maybe some other members will have some expertise to add.
Hopefully! Feel I'm losing hope with doctors atm! Especially in the UK
Are you going private or nhs?
I had a private test done first(which told me I have hypothyroidism)then went NHS for further tests a couple of months later which is when they said its not high enough to be of any concern. What about you?
I’ve only ever gone private as I was lucky to have insurance from my employer.
What is your TSH and T3 level?
If you have not yet been diagnosed yet it seems your thyroid is most likely under attack. There are apparently ways of staving off an autoimmune attack, I’m not sure of how. It would be good to reduce the damage if possible.
If you can afford it I would go to a private endo immediately as its not worth losing 1-2 years of your life (like I did) in this phase where you slowly but surely lose function until you are diagnosed and treated. I ended up being sacked from my job as I could not wake up in mornings and get to work, then I would not get much work done all day as my brain did not work. It’s not a good place to be 
There does not appear to be any notice taken of antibodies. My tpo result is shown as tpo >600 and nothing has been said about this in the 7 years I've been tested!
The presence of over range thyroid peroxidase antibodies is related to an increased probability, (but not certainty ) that the person will eventually become overtly hypothyroid ie. over range TSH with under range FT4.
They are looked at in conjunction with TSH, FT4 and symptoms by the NHS.
They will not give thyroid treatment based solely on them , and opinions differ as to whether you can do anything about them anyway, but there's no harm in trying.
For example when i was diagnosed i was technically only subclinical hypothyroid (over range TSH (and rising) but with T4 still well within range. It took 9 months before i was offered Levothyroxine and this only happened because when they tested TPOab they were 2499 and so they tested again6 weeks later and they were >3000
10 yrs later they were 195 and i'd done nothing specific to try and reduce them.
TPOab do not actually attack the thyroid , they are like marker labels that are stuck onto thyroid peroxidase that has found it's way into the bloodstream (where it shouldn't be) This happens due to the autoimmune disease process , which it seems no one understands yet.
Then other things come along and recognise the markers and clean those bits of thyroid peroxidase up.
So a raised level of TPOab indicates something has occurred , but they didn't cause it.
A % of the population do have TPOab without any apparent thyroid problems, (and i think a % have autoimmune hypothyroidism confirmed by changes seen in the thyroid without raised TPOab, but not so sure on this )
But the only proven fact about raised TPOab is that more people who have them will eventually have low T4 and raised TSH, than those who don't have raised TPOab
The levels of them seem to fluctuate, but the evidence is very scant , because they are hardly ever tested regularly, even in people who do have confirmed hyopothyroidism.
That's all i've been able to find out with any certainty , so probably everything else you read about 'reducing' them will be a matter of opinion.
High thyroid antibodies confirms autoimmune thyroid disease also called Hashimoto’s
Looking at your forum name are you on gluten free diet?
For full Thyroid evaluation you need 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 as you know you have Hashimoto’s
Ask GP to test vitamin levels or test privately
Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and before eating or drinking anything other than water .
This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)
Is this how you do your tests?
What were your most recent results and ranges
Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or thyroid antibodies or all relevant vitamins
List of private testing options
thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...
Medichecks Thyroid plus antibodies and vitamins
medichecks.com/products/adv...
Thriva Thyroid plus antibodies and vitamins By DIY fingerpick test
Thriva also offer just vitamin testing
Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes antibodies, cortisol and vitamins by DIY fingerprick test
bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...
If you can get GP to test vitamins and antibodies then cheapest option for just TSH, FT4 and FT3
£29 (via NHS private service ) and 10% off if go on thyroid uk for code
thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...
monitormyhealth.org.uk/thyr...
If TPO or TG thyroid antibodies are high this is usually due to Hashimoto’s (commonly known in UK as autoimmune thyroid disease).
About 90% of all primary hypothyroidism in Uk is due to Hashimoto’s. Low vitamin levels are particularly common with Hashimoto’s. Gluten intolerance is often a hidden issue to.
Link about thyroid blood tests
thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...
Link about Hashimoto’s
thyroiduk.org/hypothyroid-b...
List of hypothyroid symptoms
thyroiduk.org/signs-symptom...
Recommend getting FULL testing done, especially BEFORE considering seeing any thyroid specialist endocrinologist
Email Dionne at Thyroid UK for list of recommend thyroid specialist endocrinologists...NHS and Private
tukadmin@thyroiduk.org
Hashimoto's frequently affects the gut and leads to low stomach acid and then low vitamin levels
Low vitamin levels affect Thyroid hormone working
Poor gut function can lead leaky gut (literally holes in gut wall) this can cause food intolerances. Most common by far is gluten. Dairy is second most common.
According to Izabella Wentz the Thyroid Pharmacist approx 5% with Hashimoto's are coeliac, but over 80% find gluten free diet helps, sometimes significantly. Either due to direct gluten intolerance (no test available) or due to leaky gut and gluten causing molecular mimicry (see Amy Myers link)
Changing to a strictly gluten free diet may help reduce symptoms, help gut heal and slowly lower TPO antibodies
While still eating high gluten diet ask GP for coeliac blood test first or buy test online for under £20, just to rule it out first
healthcheckshop.co.uk/store...?
Assuming test is negative you can immediately go on strictly gluten free diet
(If test is positive you will need to remain on high gluten diet until endoscopy, maximum 6 weeks wait officially)
Trying gluten free diet for 3-6 months. If no noticeable improvement then reintroduce gluten and see if symptoms get worse
chriskresser.com/the-gluten...
amymyersmd.com/2018/04/3-re...
thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...
drknews.com/changing-your-d...
restartmed.com/hashimotos-g...
Non Coeliac Gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and autoimmune disease
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/296...
The predominance of Hashimoto thyroiditis represents an interesting finding, since it has been indirectly confirmed by an Italian study, showing that autoimmune thyroid disease is a risk factor for the evolution towards NCGS in a group of patients with minimal duodenal inflammation. On these bases, an autoimmune stigma in NCGS is strongly supported
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/300...
The obtained results suggest that the gluten-free diet may bring clinical benefits to women with autoimmune thyroid disease
nuclmed.gr/wp/wp-content/up...
In summary, whereas it is not yet clear whether a gluten free diet can prevent autoimmune diseases, it is worth mentioning that HT patients with or without CD benefit from a diet low in gluten as far as the progression and the potential disease complications are concerned
restartmed.com/hashimotos-g...
Despite the fact that 5-10% of patients have Celiac disease, in my experience and in the experience of many other physicians, at least 80% + of patients with Hashimoto's who go gluten-free notice a reduction in their symptoms almost immediately.
Why gluten intolerance can upset cortisol levels
Blood test results, can anyone explain them all
PLEASE CAN SOMEONE DECIPHER MY THYROID TEST RESULTS… THANKYOU
Can anyone explain these test results?
test results explained
