I decided to have my blood tested through Thriva after my GP said I did not need to have my blood tested.
My TSH, B12 and folate could not be processed as I didn't have enough blood, I gave them to samples, so I am now in discussion with Thriva to see whether I can have TSH, B12 and folate tested.
Here are the results I have received, I apologise if the ranges I have stated below are incorrect, but these are the ranges on the pictures that were sent through on the Thriva test results.
15:00 26.03.21 EDITED RANGES
Vitamin D 126 (75-175)
CRP (high sensitivity) 7.7 (<3.0) High
Active B12 64 (37.5 -188)
Thyroid advanced profile:
Thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb) 152.6 (0-34) High
Triiodothyronine (FT3) 5.2 (3.1-6.8)
Thyroglobulin antibodies (TgAB) 92.1 (0-115)
Thyroxine (T4) 160 (59-154) High
Free thyroxine (FT4) 16.4 (12-22)
Cholesterol (Lipid Profile):
Triglyceride/HDL ratio 0.84 (<1.74)
LDL cholesterol 3.7 (<3.4) High
Non-HDL Cholesterol 4.5 (<4) High
HDL cholesterol 2 (1.0-3.88)
Cholesterol 6.5 (<5.2) High
HDL/Total cholesterol ratio 31% (<20)
Triglycerides 1.67 (<2.0)
Diabetes:
HbA1c 42 (20-42)
Liver function:
Gamma-GT 14 (<42)
Alanine transferase 19 (10-35)
Albumin 37 (34-52)
Alkaline phosphatase 59 (<130)
Globulin 29 (19-35)
Bilirubin 11 (<15)
Total protein 66 (63-87)
My GP does not believe I have Hashimotos and has just sent me this link to help me deal with the cholesterol: nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-bo...
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GeorgieandBlu
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Yes, the ranges are wrong. I imagine you took them from those silly graph things, with a green bar and an orange bar? You would never have an FT4 with a range of zero to 30. It would be more like 12-22.
New blood results: High TPOAb, High CRP (high sensitivity)Result and High trend cholesterol.
So, high TPOab tells you that you have Hashi's. High CRP indicates inflammation - which lots of Hashi's people have. And, high cholesterol means that your FT3 is probably too low.
But, perhaps you could correct the ranges and you might get some more information replies.
Hi, I had the test first thing on Monday morning before eating or drinking anything and I had not taken my Levo or any other tablet.
In my last thread, we discussed my medication etc. and you asked if I could respond in a new thread once I had my blood results. healthunlocked.com/thyroidu....
I am presently taking the following:
MercuryPharma Levothyroxine Sodium 75 mgBetter You Folic Acid 400 IU spray
I am not on a gluten-free diet. I had followed a Paleo and autoimmune diet for a period of 3 months, but have since reverted to a yeast-free diet with some modifications.
I don't use Thriva (their stupid interpretation of ranges are one of the reasons) but I understand that once logged in you can see/download a pdf of your results like this:
On the graphic, ignore everything but the green bits - both light and dark - that is the range, the orange bits are out of range.
So I can put some of the ranges in that I know, others taken from the post linked to, but correct me if any are wrong when you see the normal ranges on your pdf:
HDL/Total cholesterol ratio 31% (0-100)?? HDL % OF TOTAL >20
Triglycerides 1.67 (<2)
Diabetes:
HbA1c 42 (0-48)
Liver function:
Gamma-GT 14 (<42)
Alanine transferase 19 (10-35)
Albumin 37 (34-52)
Alkaline phosphatase 59 (<130)
Globulin 29 (19-35)
Bilirubin 11 (<15)
Total protein 66 (63-87)
**
Greygoose has confirmed Hashi's which is suggested by your raised thyroid antibodies. This is where the immune system attacks the thyroid and gradually destroys it. If TSH is over range with raised antibodies, an enlightened doctor should diagnose and prescribe Levothyroxine.
FT4 and FT3 are within range, FT4 is 44% through range and FT3 is 56.76% through range. The FT4 is a little on the lowish side (a normal healthy person would probably have FT4 mid-range-ish) and FT3 currently isn't too bad.
Vitamin D 126 (75-175)
This is a pretty good result, the Vit D Society and Grassroots Health both recommend a level of 100-150nmol/L. Do you supplement?
Active B12 64 (3.75-188)
This is the better of the two B12 tests, whatever your Total B12 comes back as, the Active B12 is the one that tells you how much B12 is available to be taken up by the cells.
Active B12 below 70 suggests testing for B12 deficiency, although you can check for signs/symptoms yourself here:
If you do have any then list them to discuss with your GP and ask for testing for B12 deficiency and Pernicious Anaemia. Do not take any B12 supplements or folic acid/folate/B Complex supplements before further testing of B12 as this will mask signs of B12 deficiency and skew results.
Hello, thanks for looking at the ranges, it is a nightmare!I have been taking Better You Vitamin D+ K2 75 IU spray for a while and I suppose this is why my vitamin D levels are good.
I have just spoken with my GP and given him the test results. He said I do NOT have Hashimotos and that there is no need for me to go up on my tablets. He is going to send me a diet sheet and exercise programme so I can reduce my cholesterol.
Which, I am afraid, just goes to prove he is a donkey (I'd like to describe him otherwise but I'm not allowed to swear!)
Raised antibodies confirm autoimmune thyroid disease, known to patients as Hashimoto's.
Dr Toft, past president of the British Thyroid Association and leading endocrinologist, states in Pulse Magazine (the magazine for doctors):
Question 2:
I often see patients who have an elevated TSH but normal T4. How should I be managing them?
Answer:
The combination of a normal serum T4 and raised serum TSH is known as subclinical hypothyroidism. If measured, serum T3 will also be normal. Repeat thyroid function tests in two or three months in case the abormality represents a resolving thyroiditisis.
But if it persists then antibodies to thyroid peroxidase should be measured. If these are positive - indicative of underlying autoimmune disease - the patient should be considered to have the mildest form of hypothyroidism.
In the absence of symptoms some would simply recommend annual thyroid function tests until serum TSH is over 10mU/l or symptoms such as tiredness and weight gain develop. But a more pragmatic approach is to recognise that the thyroid failure is likely to be come worse and try to nip things in the bud rather than risk loss to follow up.
Treatment should be started with levothyroxine in a dose sufficient to restore serum TSH to the lower part of it's reference range. Levothyroxine in a dose of 75-100mcg daily will usually be enough.
If there are no thyroid peroxidase antibodies, levothyroxine should not be started unless serum TSH is consistently greater than 10mU/l. A serum TSh of less than 10mU/l in the absence of antithyroid peroxidase antibodies may simply be that patient's normal TSH concentration.
I don't think the UK's leading endocrinologist would be saying this if over range antibodies didn't suggest autoimmune thyroid disease.
The bottom line is that your GP, like many, is fairly ignorant of thyroid disease and may not even know what autoimmune thyroid disease is, it is the leading cause of hypothyroidism (around 80% I believe).
He is going to send me a diet sheet and exercise programme so I can reduce my cholesterol.
Raised cholesterol often normalises when hypothyroidism is optimally treated. Your current FT4 shows you to be undermedicated on 75mcg Levo, you need an extra 25mcg now and retest in 6-8 weeks. The aim of a treated Hypo patient on Levo only, generally, is for TSH to be 1 or below with FT4 and FT3 in the upper part of their ranges.
He apparently is well aware of Thyroid disease, he used to be a gynaecologist don't you know! what the two have in common I do not know. My GP had referred me to the local endocrinologist, I insisted, but my GP gave them the blood results that he had carried out over 1 year ago. The specialist said there was no need for me to be seen by them as I was on 75 mg and that was keeping things in check. It is not keeping things in check, I have swollen glands, I have put on 8 kgs (being on the steroids for the past 5 weeks hasn't helped) and feel lethargic all of the time. I have uveitis and psoriasis, arthritis.
If I had a gun, I would put myself down, because nothing I do seems to help my symptoms and I am at my wit's end.
The fact that you have Hashi's is neither here nor there really, Hashi's isn't treated, it's the resulting hypothyroidism that's treated, so having confirmation of Hashi's wont change anything.
You probably don't need to see an endocrinologist (many of them are a waste of time, mine made me so ill I needed to be looked after for 2 years, and after he messed up my levels by reducing my Levo my GP raised my dose again!). What you need is any doctor who understands how to treat hypothyroidism and that the aim is to help you achieve optimal dose/results to alleviate your symptoms.
Dr Toft wrote another article in Pulse magazine which I suggest you show your GP:
"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.
Did you check the links about sign/symptoms of B12 deficiency?
Thank you for the links and I will definitely contact Dionne. It is surprising how many things can be attributed to something like a lack of B12. My score for B12 deficiency was very high. I have printed out the forms and will show these to my GP and insist on having a test.
This site has definitely shown me that many individuals have encountered significant problems when tackling their health issue. However difficult it may get there are always lovely people on this site to offer guidance and support, for that I am truly thankful.
That's interesting! the GP stated that the steroids would not interfere with the Thyroid medication. I started off taking Dilacort prednisolone 60mg. I am now on Accord prednisolone gastro-resistant tablet, I went down to 40mg, then 20mg and I am now on 5mg.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/114...Orally administered prednisone, in a dose of 20 mg each day for nine days, resulted in a significant decrease in mean serum TSH levels (p less than 0.01) without significant changes in levels of serum T4, T3, and thyroxine binding globulin (TBG).
I will also show my GP these articles as I feel that it might help him to further understand the condition. Thank you for the links.
Lots of helpful comments from others about the rest but I really just wanted to reassure you that the CRP isn’t high at all and no doctor would blink at it. I have 2 rare rheumatic autoimmune diseases and I’d be singing and dancing all the way home if my CRP was that low! For me a good CRP is 11 and a normal CRP is 18 and an elevated one is 26. Same goes for your Vit D - wow I can only dream and that’s with supplementing Only ones I’d be slightly concerned about would be diabetes and cholesterol. Both of these could effectively be addressed by a low carb diet I’m guessing?
Hello, it is so difficult to know what is and what is not considered High or Low. One person will say it is and another will say it is not. I have just spoken with my GP and he didn't bat an eyelid. In his view even the cholesterol and diabetes were, well...it is borderline and you can work on that!
It is so difficult to know what to do for the best. I just know that I feel horrendous and my body is telling me that things are not right, so I must do something.
Thank you for your reassurance, it does help me to know that others have gone through this minefield and know what a nightmare it is. We can all extract some knowledge from this site that may help our own situation.
It’s horrible feeling ill and disbelieved I know. I dislike when people offer me dietary advice - presuming I haven’t tried my hardest. But I did manage to reverse prediabetes by following a low carb diet (the Mosley one) for about 6 months.
I’m sure your diet is already something you are aware of and careful about. But given the diabetes result I just thought I’d tell you that the Mosley diet helped me to lose weight and reversed my prediabetic state a few years ago. Diabetes in early stages can make people feel pretty awful.
Otherwise I can’t help you but you do have my heartfelt sympathy.
Hi, my GP said that the high TPOAb states that I have a slight thyroid problem, which he is aware of and has given me the correct dose medication. He said that annual blood tests are appropriate and they will only do a 6 monthly blood test if he feels it is necessary. He added that I am wasting my money in carrying out these additional blood tests and that I should be discussing the results with the company that has carried them out.
What a horrible, arrogant so-and-so! And, on top of it, he knows nothing! Cholesterol levels are nothing to do with diet. It's made in the liver - and it's made in the liver because the body needs it. The liver strives to keep your cholesterol level constant, so the more you eat, the less it makes. The less you eat, the more it makes. However, when T3 is low, the body cannot process and excrete cholesterol correctly, and it tends to build up in the blood. But, that is not a problem, because cholesterol does not cause heart attacks or strokes - despite what doctors believe - and they only believe that because statin salesment told them so!
One thing that does bother me, though: why are you taking calcichew? Calcium is not a good supplement to take because it is not easily absorbed. And, if you are taking vit D, that will increase your absorption of calcium from food, anyway. Which is why you need to take vit K2-MK7, to make sure the extra calcium goes into the teeth and bones, and doesn't build up in the soft tissues. Excess calcium is not a good thing to have, and can actually cause heart attacks, whereas cholesterol doesn't.
my GP said that the high TPOAb states that I have a slight thyroid problem
What an idiot! lol So, what does he make of people with raging hypo that don't have any antibodies at all?!?
The hospital gave me the calcium when I started the steroids, they said they wanted to prevent any issues with my bones. They hadn't added that I needed to take the K2-MK7 for it to make appropriate absorption. I will order some K2-MK7 tonight and pass on the additional information to the specialist, who seems to be inadvertently creating more health issues.
I despair of my GP, but unfortunately, I am stuck with him as I cannot move to another doctor in the surgery and the other local surgeries are full. My GP has given me no choice but to request private consultations and tests when I can afford them, and access information from you lovely people. My health would be significantly worse if I hadn't sought alternative care.Who knows what goes through his head! I might tell my GP to join this site, he will find it insightful and can use the information gained here as a form of CPD.
If you follow members' advice I believe you would get more sense than the majority of doctors give or know about.
For us, the patient, it is a read and ask questions to get proper answers on the forum as doctors know little about dysfuctional thyroid glands.
Before blood tests were introduced as the most positive way to diagnose thyroid gland problems, doctors diagnosed us upon our clinical symptoms alone and we were given 'natural dessicated thyroid hormones' commonly called NDTs. Unfortunately those professionals you'd imagine would know much more than we, the patient, withdrew this product which was given since 1892 - without blood tests and doctors considering patiets symptoms alone, so its safety was well proven and it saved lives from then on.
I don't know why they insist in giving levothyroxinw which is T4 alone and is supposed to convert to T3.
I don't suppose the hospital knows anything about the dangers of excess calcium, and probably don't care. Obviously they didn't know that prescribing calcium would not prevent issues with bones. Too much calcium makes bones brittle, it does not make them strong. Far more important are vit D and magnesium. Are you taking magnesium? You should be because it works together with vit D.
Do the hospital - or anyone - regularly test your serum calcium? They should do. So, if you haven't had a calcium test for a while, get one as soon as you can, and then consider if you should continue taking the calcium. Doctors know nothing about nutrients. They don't learn about them in med school. And, this idea about calcium building strong bones, or whatever, is an advertising ploy by the dairy industry, not scientific/medical advise. We've all been brainwashed into believing we need massive amounts of calcium.
I very much doubt if your GP would join this site, but if he does, I hope he just lurks and doesn't give 'advice'! lol
I have been on the calcium for about 5 weeks. They haven’t carried out any bloods. I will have a look to see if I can have a test to check my calcium level.
I agree with humanbean . You have to check up on these people all the time. You can't just assume they know what they're doing. And, now we have internet, there's no reason not to. You need to get your calcium tested ASAP.
I always think it is a good idea to research what happens if I end up with too much of a particular nutrient. So, for example, I take magnesium citrate. I periodically remind myself of the symptoms of high magnesium. Ditto with other nutrients I take.
I can never remember the symptoms for very long, so I have to remind myself regularly. Since you've been prescribed something with calcium in, but haven't had your level of calcium actually tested beforehand, you should read this :
Well, that's rather an old article, and I would dispute the need for supplementary calcium. It's very rare for people in the west to be calcium deficient, even if they don't eat dairy. And, whilst calcium is important, there are other nutrients that are even more important for bones, like magnesium. And, giving calcium supplements without first testing a persons calcium level still remains a crime of negligence.
Consider starting levothyroxine at a dosage of 1.6 micrograms per kilogram of body weight per day (rounded to the nearest 25 micrograms) for adults under 65 with primary hypothyroidism and no history of cardiovascular disease.
Traditionally we have tended to start patients on a low dose of levothyroxine and titrate it up over a period of months. RCT evidence suggests that for the majority of patients this is not necessary and may waste resources.
For patients aged >60y or with ischaemic heart disease, start levothyroxine at 25–50μg daily and titrate up every 3 to 6 weeks as tolerated.
For ALL other patients start at full replacement dose. For most this will equate to 1.6 μg/kg/day (approximately 100μg for a 60kg woman and 125μg for a 75kg man).
If you are starting treatment for subclinical hypothyroidism, this article advises starting at a dose close to the full treatment dose on the basis that it is difficult to assess symptom response unless a therapeutic dose has been trialled.
This link just shows how important the thyroid is and if not properly managed how it can disastrously affect an individual. I for one am not planning on having diabetes. So thank you for the link. It is time for me to take on board all of this information and do something about it. 😀
We are both Sjogrens peeps no?
Lip biopsy? I’m antibody positive for systemic sclerosis (the grimmest one) but Seronegative Sjogren’s is my preferred overlap🤞🏻😉
Thankfully these primary secondary distinctions are now going out with the arc! “The new ACR/EULAR criteria no longer distinguish between primary and secondary SS and we will thus address the management of SS as a single entity but comment on management of overlaps where appropriate.”
I’m glad I was able to find you all, this has been my saving grace. I am currently in bed reading all the documents I have printed from the links detailed above. Knowledge is Power.
One thing that pharmaceutical companies do is they change reference ranges in order to sell more drugs and to make more people think they are sick and need treatment.
Ignoring the fact that our bodies make cholesterol for a reason...
Until the mid 90s the top of the range for cholesterol was 7.5. Now it is usually around 5. When this change was made it instantly meant that the majority of people in the UK had unhealthy levels of cholesterol.
Study the graphs on this link, and don't worry about your cholesterol :
I was beginning to stress a little about how I was going to reduce my cholesterol and diabetes levels, whilst managing my thyroid and uveitis. The steroids haven’t helped in terms of managing any of these conditions.
I am going to try the paleo autoimmune diet again to see whether it has a positive impact.
Thank you for the links. 🤗
Nah takes years for this stuff to reach general Rheumatologists let alone GPs! Save the link though because you can always put yours to shame if they try and feed you the primary / secondary thing. None of mine do anymore to be fair although I have a suspicion my scleroderma was what they diagnosed as RA ten years ago because that’s when my Raynaud’s suddenly arrived.
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