Please could someone advise me here. I was told I have borderline hypothyroidism last year and the dr wanted to start me on levothyroxine. I started taking these and they caused terrible missed heartbeats and then when my cardiologist found out I was taking them he took me off them saying that Levothyrocine should only be taken if absolutely necessary when you have a heart condition. Well today I got my blood tests back again and my dr has asked for a telephone consultation with me to discuss. My results show a raised T4 and also a raised TSH and although I know a bit about these numbers I can’t find anything that tells you what it means when both are raised. Here are my results
T4 12.9
TSH 8.2
I’d appreciate any advice from anyone on here who knows anything about this.
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Buffy6956
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Can you please add the reference ranges for these results.
We can see that your TSH is above range but by the ranges for FT4 we see here on the forum your FT4 is not over range, ranges we see here are
7-17
9-19
11-23
12-22
plus others.
Do you take Biotin, or a B Complex containing Biotin? If so this needs to be left off for up to 7 days before any blood test as it causes false results when Biotin is used in the testing procedure (which most labs do).
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 if you have autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) diagnosed by raised Thyroid antibodies
Ask GP to test vitamin levels
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)
Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or thyroid antibodies or all relevant vitamins
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.
Ty so much... my vitamin D level is low it came in at 27 and the range is 50-100 do I know that much... my TSH is 8.2 range is 0.27-4.20 and my T4 is 12.9
my TSH is 8.2 range is 0.27-4.20 and my T4 is 12.9
You've given us the reference range for TSH, but what is the range for the FT4 result please? I very much doubt it is "raised" as in over range because no range that we see here on this forum has a top limit as low as 12-ish. I actually think your FT4 is low in range but need you to confirm the range please.
wmy vitamin D level is low it came in at 27 and the range is 50-100
What is the unit of measurement for Vit D - nmol/L or ng/ml?
So an NHS test then? Done at GP surgery? If so just ask the receptionist (not the doctor) for a print out, in the UK we are legally entitled to our test results without charge or question.
We have to always state the 'ranges' of blood test results (they are usually after the results and are in brackets.
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when my cardiologist found out I was taking them he took me off them saying that Levothyrocine should only be taken if absolutely necessary when you have a heart condition.
What heart condition have you been diagnosed with?
Your cardiologist clearly doesn't know that untreated and poorly treated hypothyroidism is dangerous to the heart - and I'm sure I've read that it is more dangerous than having a mildly overactive thyroid.
You could look for info on this subject by searching for links on "hypothyroidism and the heart".
One thing to be aware of is that doctors think that hypothyroidism slows the heart rate, and for a lot of sufferers that is true. But there are a substantial number of hypothyroid people on this forum who have mentioned having tachycardia (heart rate greater than 100 beats a minute).
Other things to consider are that hypothyroidism damages the gut, mainly by reducing stomach acid and making it difficult for the body to metabolise food and extract nutrients from it. So levels of basic minerals and vitamins are often quite low or are frankly deficient.
The nutrients that get mentioned most often on this forum are vitamin D, vitamin B12, folate, and ferritin (iron stores). These are particularly important for us because they are needed in converting T4 (the storage form of thyroid hormone) to T3 (the active thyroid hormone that every cell in the human body needs in order to work well).
Doctors have little or no interest in nutrients, and very few of them seem to know that low nutrients are extremely common in hypothyroidism. Also, they are often only interested in nutrients when levels are actually deficient, not just low in range.
The reason for mentioning nutrients is that low levels of iron, vitamin B12 and folate can have lots of unpleasant effects on the heart. Low levels of iron, for example, can cause tachycardia, palpitations, chest pain, missed beats. Similar symptoms can often occur in cases of low vitamin B12 and/or low folate.
I think you should resist any suggestion from doctors that you stop taking Levothyroxine. Your health will just go more and more downhill from not having sufficient thyroid hormones. T4 and T3 are not optional extras in the body - they are vital for good health.
One other thing...
Hypothyroid people often have low blood pressure, at least in the early days of the condition, but eventually blood pressure rises and can rise to become dramatically high. Read this link for a patient anecdote on the problem :
Another thing you really need to know is what TSH is "normal" for healthy people - and bear in mind that many hypo people actually need a lower TSH than healthy people in order to feel well. See this link for more info on TSH :
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