Hi! I've been wondering if I might have a thyroid problem. My mum had an underactive thyroid, so I have family history. I'm really struggling to lose weight, and I'm really low on energy.
My doctor tested my thyroid last month, said everything was fine. I got a copy of the results for an unrelated hospital appointment, but I'm not sure if they actually look alright
My TSH is 0.51 - the range given is 0.35-5.0 mU/L, so I'm quite low in range?
The FreeT4 is 12.4 pmol/L (9.0-21.0), which also seems quite low in range?
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Lin09
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You are right to wonder, as it can run in families, especially females.
Your TSH is low, which is good. A healthy thyroid would not need a high TSH. But your FT4 is only 28.33% into the reference range. So that's quite low. And as there is no FT3 test we don't know how well you are converting the T4 into T3.
There are no antibody tests either so we don't know if you might have an autoimmune thyroiditis.
If you are prepared to pay for a private test, Blue Horizon does a full thyroid panel which will give you a lot more information and they have discounts on thyroid tests on Thursdays. This is the test you need: bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...
There might be a discount code available from Thyroid UK, have a look.
Yes, that's where you want it to be. High TSH means you are definitely hypothyroid. TSH should be 1 or below if you are on Levothyroxine. A normal healthy person will have a TSH that varies, but it will be under 2 most of the time.
It might be a good idea to test your FT3 this is the active thyroid hormone. There are also thyroid antibodies. Autoimmune thyroiditis (Hashimoto) can run in families.
Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) and Thyroglobulin (Tg) are thyroid antibodies you might want to have tested. If these are positive it will strongly support early treatment ie when you level begin to show low and not when they are severely under range.
It’s also a good idea to test B12, folate ferritin & vitamin D. These can mimic & compound hypo symptoms if there was a thyroid issue.
Your GP likely refuse to test all these but you might consider a private test. Samples can be taken via finger prick test.
I think I tick a few of them. Skin problems (that's why my GP tested thyroid), pins and needles at night, aches and pains, slow speech (struggling for words) heavy eyes, insomnia, a few others too.
Damnit! I meant Medichecks! I was at work when I posted. Blue Horizon used to be good but are much more expensive now. I use either Medichecks or Monitor My Health when I just need a quick 3 test result.
For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 plus both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested.
Very important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12
Low vitamin levels are extremely common, especially with autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s or Ord’s thyroiditis)
Low vitamin levels common as we get older too
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 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.
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are these test results ok
Tell patient results are ok
Tried everything and still not feeling ok
Is it ok to take DHEA and NDT together?
