Thyroid Results advice and are private tests accurate?

[HealthySam]

I wonder if anyone can help I have got aches and pains in my joints I’m taking 1000 Vitamin D per day (Dr just said take it but not how much!) and sunbathing whenever possible as was told I’m slightly deficient.

Here are my latest result with no change in medication 25 micro grams Levothyroxine (previous results below)

July 2021

TSH 3.34 (0.35-5.5)

T4 12.4 (10.50-21)

Free T3 4.4

TPO >1300

Rheumatoid Factor <10

Serum Ana 0.2 (0-0.90)

Previous results below when first

prescribed 25mg Levo as Dr said only slightly hypo (end May)

TSH 5.87 (0.35-5.5)

T4 10.3 (10.50-21)

Vit D 43.2 ( 30-50 May be inadequate)

Folate 8.27 (>5.38)

Sodium 143 (133-146)

Potassium 4 (3.5-5.3)

Creatinine 77 (44-97)

Iron 17.6 (10-30.40)

Transferrin 2.65 (2.5-3.80)

Percentage iron saturation 29% (16-50 %)

I always take the tests now in a fasted state.

First question- Can anyone see if I should be pushing for more medication? My Dr is not at all concerned about my very high antibodies in fact quite dismissive.

Second question- Should I ask for a referral to an endocrinologist?

Private test? My concern with the private tests are as you send them in the post is the quality good as my husband is a former scientist and says that if a sample is not kept cool then the sample will degrade.

So

Third question - Has anyone tested the private tests against Doctors tests results? and does anyone know if Drs send them in the same way ie by post or are they sent in a cooler bag?

Hope someone can help me with answers to some of my questions as I have felt less fatigued but still struggling so have cut my work hours down.

[GrowingVeg]

Hi HealthySam, I'm not an expert at any of this, but can say that 25 levo is not a full dose. It's likely that you need to take a higher dose to feel better. So I say yes, ask for a dose increase.

When I started on levo treatment, my results looked similar to yours, I was in a really bad way and had to take a step down at work. I was told the 25 levo would make me feel better in a couple of weeks...It's been an ongoing struggle with the gp. I felt worse before I felt better, I now take 125 and generally feel a whole lot better.

I'm really glad you found this forum, lots of helpful and look knowledgeable people to talk to. I'm sure that they will help with your other questions.

[HealthySam in reply to GrowingVeg]

Thanks for replying it sounds like we have a similar experience so this really helps me in going back to the Dr.

[Localhero]

HealthySam

Welcome to the forum.

My understanding is that you cannot be “slightly hypothyroid”. Either you are or you aren’t.

I would say your TSH at 3.34 is still too high for you to feel well. When properly treated, you’d expect it to be less than 2 and more usually less than 1.

25mcg is a very small dose, usually reserved for older people or people with heart conditions. Is that you? If not, I’d definitely be pushing for an increase in dosage, retesting in another 6-8 weeks.

Also, it’s completely inadequate just to look at TSH and FT4. You need also to look at FT3 as that’s the active hormone and is more responsible for hypothyroid symptoms.

I’m not as up on vitamin levels and hopefully someone else will be along to comment. But you need vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 to be optimal for thyroid health.

You say you do your tests fasted which is good. But at what time of day are you doing them? And are you leaving off taking your Levothyroxine for 24 hours until after the test?

[HealthySam in reply to Localhero]

Hi I am 55 with no heart problems. I take the Levo at night and the test is fasted in the morning I followed advice on a Facebook forum on delaying the doses 2 days before to ensure an accurate result. My antibodies seem sky high but the Dr isn’t concerned and doesn’t really want to test them.

[HealthySam in reply to Localhero]

Forgot to ask what you think of private tests reliability and to thank you for replying Localhero

[Localhero in reply to HealthySam]

Pleasure.

I think the private tests seem pretty accurate. At least they always have done to me. The last couple of Medichecks tests I’ve done, I’ve actually used their blood draw service with Superdrug and been pretty impressed with it all.

FWIW, I think Medichecks use and/or are part of The Doctors Laboratory, which is where my endo sends me before one of his appointments, so I’m pretty trusting of it all. I think the main thing is to be consistent with the conditions under which you’re testing. I always have an early morning appointment, fasted, with Levo taken 24 hours before (but not on the morning of the appointment) and T3 taken 8-12 hours before.

[HealthySam in reply to Localhero]

Thanks I will follow your advice and get them to draw the blood rather than do the finger prick method next time.

[Localhero in reply to HealthySam]

I know lots of folks here do the finger pricks tests with complete confidence but I almost fainted doing it once and since then have done the draw which works great. Good luck with it and do let us know how you get on 😊

[pennyannie]

Hello HealthySam:

I would thnk private tests just as accurate as NHS tests, and we see this excuse used when doctors " play for time " and hopefully look further than the computer dogma they maybe use to following.

Do you have a range for the T3 result please ?

A TSH of over 3 is considered hypothyroid and treatment commenced in most forward thinking countries.

Considering you are already on medication it is much too high and a signalling that you need to have more T4 thyroid hormone medcation as with an thyroid auto immune disease we generally feel better when our TSH is low in the range and at around 1 :

Once on any form of thyroid hormone replacement you should be tested and monitored on your T3 and T4 blood test results and not a TSH seem in isolation, as currently seems to be the situation in primary care.

The high antibodes are suggestive of Hashmoto's auto immune thyroid disease and suggest you start reading up on the Thyroid Uk website who are the charity who support this forum.

No thyroid hormone replacement works well if your strength tamins and minerals are not maintained at optimal levels so I'd suggest you ask to have your ferritin, folate, B12 and vitamin D tested and post these ranges and results back up on here for consideration.

You likely will be in thr ranges and told you are " ok and good to go " but when with an AI disease we need optimal results and not just somewhere in a range that is too wide to be sensible anyway, and you may need to supplement these yourself.

Currently your T4 isn't even at 20% through the range and we generally feel at our best when T4 registers in the top quadrant of its range :

T3 is generally a % of T4 and the accepted ratio when on T4 only is said to be 1 / 3.50-4.50 T3/T4 with most people preferring to come in at 4 or under.

So if I divide your T3 into your T4 I'm getting 2.8- so metabolism seems to be running a bit fast, but it's likely to do with the swings and erratic thyroid production experienced by people suggering with Hashimoto's thyroid auto immune disease.

Is there another doctor you can see, who maybe has a better understandig of thyroid health issues ?

[HealthySam in reply to pennyannie]

Hi thanks for the reply. pennyannie The free T3 didn’t have a range just shown as normal on my results. (Perhaps it was hidden 😀) I think you are right I might as well get private tests done again and plonk them in front of the Dr. again who only agreed to do the antibodies test after I showed her a private test which she dismissed and then took another tests. The antibodies are going up. I might wait a few weeks though as have just had my second vaccine and not sure how that affects the thyroid or the hashimotos.