Hi there Some advice please I’ve just had results back which showed my TSH level was 0.01 Range 0.35-4.34 My GP is concerned as it has gone down Omer the last year I’m currently taking 1 3/4 NDT plus 50 Levo she wants me to lower the Levo to 25
Other levels are : T3 3.70 ((3.63-5.70)
T4 10.40 (9.01-19.05)
Any advice I would be grateful Many thanks
Papillon2011
Is your NDT prescribed? If so then whoever prescribes it should know how to read test results when taking it. Taking NDT lowers, even suppresses TSH, it's just what it does. We don't need to worry about that, the important results are FT4 and even more important FT3.
If you reduce your Levo your TSH probably wont increase because you'll still be taking NDT.
Your FT4 is already very low in range and will reduce even more if Levo dose is reduced.
Your FT3 is also extremely low in range for someone taking NDT.
If anything your dose of NDT needs increasing and Levo dose kept the same.
How do you feel on these doses?
Out of interest, when did you take your last doses before that test? Last dose of Levo should be 24 hours before test. For NDT it should be split into 2 or 3 doses the day before and last part of dose should be taken 8-12 hours before the test. Any longer than these times and you get false low FT4/FT3 results.
Hi I get my NDT from Thialand so it’s not prescribed. I think I probably had the blood test too late in the day. I probably took my last meds 18 hours before!!!
Thank you for replying. I don’t know if I feel ok. Some days I do some I don’t. Still having night sweats.
Hey there again :
When taking any thyroid hormone medication containing T3 your TSH is likely to go low, or suppressed:
This does not matter providing your T3 and T4 are in range :
On NDT the T4 can drop lower than when on synthetic T4 thyroid hormone replacement but your T3 should be proportionately higher.
Your levels still look low to me - how long did you leave between blood draw and last dose ?
Are you still with symptoms ?
Hi pennyannie. Thank you for reply. Yes I have heard that TSH is suppressed but that just seemed very low. Think I left it too long between last dose and blood test too. But last blood test it was very low too which was why she wanted me to start taking the Levo.
Well, I am in the TSH 0.01 club - so I shouldn't worry about your TSH.
I generally leave around 19 ours between blood draw and last dose but my results then show a T3 at around 110% and a T4 at 25% through the range :
If I do not fast and eat my T3 comes in at around 80% through the range -
I take 1 + 1/2 grains of Thyroid S at around 3 am in the morning.
I'm with Graves post RAI thyroid ablation and managing lingering Graves, thyroid eye disease - caused by the RAI and hypothyroidism.
Thanks for your reply. So I still need to get my T3 level up. With the NDT are all the bottles providing exactly the same ratio of T3and T4 do you know?
I believe it depends on the brand you are using :
You say you buy from Thailand and as I understand it Thyroid S is the only one now available and each grain contains a measured amount of both T3 and T4 that being :- 9 mcg T3 + 38 mcg T4 :
There are other brands from the States the most well known one being Armour and that too contains 9 T3 and 38 mcg T4 - I believe some other brands have a slightly different measure of T3 and T4 - but this should be stated on the bottle and PIL :
Yes it’s the Thyroid S that I get.
Night sweats often low B12
Essential to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 at least annually
Suggest you test thyroid and vitamin levels yourself
Always test as early as possible in morning before eating or drinking anything other than water
Make sure you take last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test
Last 1/2 or 1/3rd on NDT dose 8-12 hours before test
List of private testing options
thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...
Medichecks Thyroid plus antibodies and vitamins
medichecks.com/products/adv...
Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes antibodies, cortisol and vitamins by DIY fingerprick test
bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...
Thank you for reply
B12 was tested it was 511. (187-883)
Should I try and increase B12 to see if it makes any difference?
What was folate?
That wasn’t checked
Tell GP to look at your thyroid hormones which are both low in range not high. GP shouldn’t use TSH to dose. Low TSH with ‘normal’ thyroid levels is not a risk for Osteoporosis or Atrial Fibrillation.
Thank you for reply. My GP has noted “sample haemolysed , and could cause damage in both K+ and Billirubin results”. Not sure what this means ???
The blood sample, for whatever reason, was in a state not suitable for testing. Haemolysis is where the cells have broken open.
Lots of things contribute to this - including time and heat.
Oh I see. Thank you for clearing that up.
Hello,
I was looking at posts about low TSH because I suffer with nightly night sweats and have very low TSH. Mind if I ask if you have found a cause for yours and did you manage to remedy the problem?
Thanks
Hi. Unfortunately no I haven’t found the answer to the night sweats. Just pulling the sheet on and off most of the night. I have just started taking selenium which is supposed to be helpful for thyroid. I wish I had the answer 😞
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