TSH..T3,T4..when are we classed as hypo? - Thyroid UK

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TSH..T3,T4..when are we classed as hypo?

birkie profile image
3 Replies

Hi everyone ❤️

I posted on here yesterday about some results I've just got through my surgery, I requested these a month ago they are from Aug 23rd 2021, and have just received them yesterday 🤦‍♀️.. Ok it says TSH... 15.12...range... 0.30...4.50)

T3...6.6.....range.. 3.10...6.80

T4... 2.8..range.. 11.00..22.00

I take 25mg T3 medication teva brand (lactose intolorent) split in to 3..10mg 8am,..) 10mg 2 pm) 5mg.. 8pm..) I've been on this amount for over 12 months I started on 10mg and built up until I reached 30mg earlier this year I was by then splitting them up by 10s morning, afternoon, night.. I was taken to A&E in May this year with a resting heartbeat of 133...then again in the beginning of June with resting HB of 147...A&E doctor said I was taking to much T3 as my symptoms were palpitations, sweating, tremor, I asked him to look over my thyroid bloods as I was sure my last bloods were all OK.. He did but insisted I have another blood test done at A&E, I did but told him I'd taken my T3 medication in the morning and after noon at 20mg..again he said its your thyroid medication making you like this, he suggested I speek to my gp and he would send the blood results to him... My gp said your T3 is in good range T4 low(that's to be expected being on T3 only) TSH was OK.. 🤷‍♀️ But calcium was 2.79..adjusted to 2.59,my calcium as been in the upper range since May this year and endo wrote saying it was probably primary hyperparathyroidism, now endo says secondary 🤦‍♀️ but I'm confused as to the diagnosis on the result from Aug 23rd 2021,TSH being 15.12..if taking your T3, thyroid medication doesn't affect the TSH, and my T4 is.. 2.8(will be low anyway being on T3) my actual T3 is.. 6.6....this wouldn't indicate hypo as the report says!! would the T3 not be lower? They can't use the T4 as a hypo result can they? As I said it will be low being on T3 only"🤔.. And if I upped my T3 medication would that not send the T3 higher?.... I'm soooo confused by this🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

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birkie
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tattybogle profile image
tattybogle

Someone writing 'hypothyroid' on a report with this high TSH and this low fT4 isn't a surprise if they don't understand that you are taking T3 only, NHS people are so used to only looking at TSH /fT4 they may have not even considered the FT3 result and not understood you take no T4 at all.. so i wouldn't focus too much on the fact that it someone at the lab has written hypo on it .. but what is confusing is 'why has your TSH gone this high ?' .. it shouldn't have gone this high as you are still taking same dose of T3 as you were when TSH was 0.04 in June and 0.8 in early Sept.

The other surprising thing is that previously when you had a surprise blood test after taking T3 dose .. your fT3 came back quite over rage at about 11, so you would expect similar this time , but it's in range despite taking most of that days dose within 12 hrs of blood test.

Are you sure your current T3 is 'good' ? is there any possibility that it's less potent /fake? have you any illness/sickness/change in the last few weeks that might explain you not absorbing it as well as you usually do .... if so this might explain why TSH has risen so high.

(your 'real' fT3 level will obviously be quite a bit lower than 6.6 , if you took 10mcg at 2pm and then had these bloods done late afternoon)

So i think your more important question should be "why the high TSH?" rather than "when are we classed as hypo ?"

EDIT .. realised later , the high TSH is probably due to missing T3 totally for at least 5 days around the 15th August, then testing on 23rd August.

birkie profile image
birkie in reply to tattybogle

Hi tattybogle❤️Thank you for your reply 👍

Actually in May and early June 2020 my calcium went over range, my gp said its only mildly elevated.my may calcium was 2.62.... My June calcium was 2.61..adjusted to 2.51..(my resting calcium as always been between 2.34/5)..i asked my gp to send the calciums to my endo the endo requested pth,calcium, vit D, at the end of June 2020 the PTH was 8.1..with a calcium of 2.61 adjusted to 2.51 unfortunately for some reason the gp didn't do vitamin D but the endo wrote to me saying I probably have primary hyperparathiyroidism, he re did bloods in Aug 2020..PTH of 9.5...calcium of 2.69 adjusted to 2.54 but again go didn't do vitamin D on same draw went with an old vit D done in 2019 of 70..( in order to diagnose primary or secondary hyperparathiyroidism you must do all 3 blood draws, PTH, calcium, vit D😠.. Again the endo requested bloods In sep 2020..surgery did.. Calcium at 2.44 adjusted result... But D of 29...NO PTH.. 😠 so endo put me on vitamin D at 800iu..blue gel capsules, they made me worse... I changed to better you spray at 1000iu..but my calcium fluctuates but is nearly always at the top end so that would indicate primary, new endo I saw sep 24th 2021 says I have secondary and had put me on 3000iu bit D, so I don't know if this parathyroid thing is having an affect on thyroid results or not.. 😭

tattybogle profile image
tattybogle in reply to birkie

i'm afraid i don't know if taking Vit D can ever cause TSH to rise like this. did you have any other recent changes ? like different source of T3 tablets ?

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