Child with under active thyroid

My 8 year diagnosed with under active thyroid had normal scan and negative coeliac screen. They say it’s definitely autoimmune.Should I look for more allergy testing? Anyone have any experience with young children?

[shaws Administrator]

Welcome to our forum and am very sorry your 8 year old has been diagnosed with an underactive thyroid gland. Due to it being an autoimmune it is also called 'Hashimoto's due to antibodies being in the blood. Treatment is the same as hypothyroidism.

I am not medically qualified but many members are extremely knowledgeable and will respond when they read your post.

This is the procedure when blood tests for thyroid hormones:-

The following link should be helpful:-

aboutkidshealth.ca/Article?...

When a blood test is due, make the earlest appointment and it is a fasting test but she can drink water -- even if made weeks ahead - and don't take levothyroxine before, but after appointment.

Levothyroxine is taken with one glass of water on an empty stomach (usually when we awake) and wait an hour before eating. Food could interfere with the uptake.of levo.

Millions do fine on levothyroxine and I hope that your daughter will take it in her stride as many youngsters do.

Regards

[Hidden in reply to shaws]

Thanks for your help

[helvella Administrator]

Many tests – e.g. blood tests – have special paediatric ranges (reference intervals). It is important that they are used rather than standard adult ranges as, at times, they are significantly different.

For example, this lab puts that information on its website:

frontierpathology.nhs.uk/pu...

But you MUST use the reference intervals for the lab which did the tests - these are only to illustrate.

For children, it is probably sensible to request levothyroxine oral solution (also called liquid levothyroxine). It makes fine adjustments of dose much, much easier.

Paediatric reference intervals

[Hidden in reply to helvella]

Thanks

[nellie237]

Hi Trax,

I can empathise with how you are feeling as my daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes aged 10. That was 25 yrs ago, and we didn't question Dr's so much then. I remember clearly the 1st day after dx that I dropped her off at school, and having to run to my car. I hadn't felt them coming, and I wasn't crying, but tears were just streaming from my eyes, really flooding and I couldn't make them stop.

Everything went haywire through puberty, which makes sense when talking hormones. She was diagnosed Hashi's a couple of years ago.

Don't assume a negative test rules out a positive in the future. I tested negative for Coeliac 13yrs ago, but positive last year.

It really is hit & miss whether your daughter will develop any more autoimmune problems, and I sincerely hope she doesn't, but you are doing the right thing by being aware.

[radd]

Trax246,

Welcome to our forum and sorry to hear about your daughter. It must be extremely worrying for you both.

Hypothyroidism is most commonly caused by an autoimmune disease called Hashimotos, which attacks our thyroid gland. It can cause inflammation & swelling aka as a goitre, or feelings of a lump in the throat. As the gland is dstroyed it is unable to produce adeqaute hormone & so Levothyroxine will replace what is missing.

During times of high thyroid antibody activity or other hormonal changes your daughter may also experince periods of too much hormone as large amounts are suddenly dumped into the blood stream as the gland is destroyed. This often brings on a sore throat & flu-like symptoms.

It is good your daughters hypothyrodism has been discovered and can now be treated, as replacement helps to quell unwanted activity, and replaces essential hormones needed for her healthy developement. Although I wasn’t diagnoised until late-forties am sure my own Hashimotos first started during puberty, raising its ugly head after each pregnancy, before finally being confirmed late perimenopause. Many other members have also complained of a life time of extreme cold fatigue and other hormonal difficulties.

A good read is The Root Cause by Isabella Wentz. It isn’t directed at children and so the suggested supplements may not be appropriate until later years but it does offer an excellant understanding of how the autoimmune sytem works and can be negatively influenced & positively modified by healthy diet & lifestyle.

.

This forum is run by a charity called ThyroidUK where solid information can be found.

thyroiduk.org

.

British thyroid Foundation offers information on children & Hashimotos.

btf-thyroid.org/hashimotos-...

[mistydog]

To add to the excellent advice so far, keep copies of results, don't allow dose changes based on TSH and good luck!

[Hannah66692]

Hello, I’m so sorry your child is going through this (and you!). I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s aged 9 so I know the score here. Obviously go with a certain amount of doc advice and blood results etc but PLEASE consider a gluten and dairy free diet for him/her (happy to recommend resources that I’ve found the most helpful) - I went through literal agonies growing up as a result of continuing to eat both gluten and dairy without restraint!

Another thing I can recommend is considering whether he/she had any infections/stomach upsets/other medical issues etc immediately prior to being investigated for Hashimoto’s as this may hold a clue into how you can best help him/her get better. (I had a serious and long lasting stomach problem for months before my diagnosis and so I had a lot of gut health rebalancing through vitamins and diet changes to help me properly recover.)

Having got extremely sick from under medication (levothyroxine) from ages 12-28 and having just passed my 4th anniversary of no longer needing ANY medication, I will say it’s absolutely possible to get your child all the help they need, before it has any kind of long lasting impact on their life.

Please do get in touch if I can help further!

[Hidden in reply to Hannah66692]

Thank you for your help. It’s really interesting as she has been treated for reflux since she was a baby. I have always been told she will grow out of it. I had to ask GP for blood tests which is the only reason they found the thyroid issue