Hypo w/ High Ferritin

[copco]

I've been Hypo and have had high Ferritin for years and to date, there is no answer as to whether the two are connected and if so, which is primary and or secondary.

I take 3 grains of NDT (recently increased from 2 grains) because I did not do well on T4 only treatment.

At 2 grains I was still symptomatic, but my #s were

TSH - .47 mIU/L (range .4 - 4.5 mIU/L)

Free T3 - 3.3 pg/mL (2.3-4.2 pg/mL)

Free T4 -1.0 ng/dL (.8-1.8 ng/dL)

My most recent serum ferritin was 685 ng/mL (range 38-380 mg/mL). My other iron measures are normal.

TIBC - 298 mcg/dL (250-425 mcg/dL)

Total Iron - 106 mcg/dL (50-180 mcg/dL)

%Sat - 36 (15-60 % (calc))

Transferrin - 247 mg/dL (188-341 mg/dL)

C Reactive 2.5 mg/L (< 8.0 mg/L )

I've tested negative for Hemochromatosis twice. It was done twice because doctors don't seem to care to read prior labs.

I'm currently taking Testosterone because my total numbers were below 200.

I'm wondering if anyone has any idea what's going on here? Thank you.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Do you have autoimmune thyroid disease? Also called Hashimoto’s

Hashimoto’s causes inflammation

Inflammation can cause increased ferritin

Can you add your full iron panel test results and ranges

Male range on ferritin is usually 15-400 approx….so 685 is not hugely high

[copco in reply to SlowDragon]

Hello. I posted the iron #s in the original post. Over several years my ferritin has fluctuated from 607 to 873.

[Hidden in reply to copco]

We need the ranges as well as the results

[copco in reply to Hidden]

Ferritin ranges 38-380 ng/mL, I'll the other ranges in the original post. Thank you.

[Jazzw]

Have you had C Reactive Protein tested ever?

If it’s due to inflammation, the chances are you’d also have a high CRP. Might be a way to rule in/rule out a reason for the high levels.

It looks like the raise in NDT was very necessary—although raising by a grain all at once isn’t always advisable. How are you feeling now?

[copco in reply to Jazzw]

Hello. I posted the C Reactive above. C Activity was 109% in a range of 70-180%

How is it that you could tell that the raise in NDT was necessary?

[Jazzw in reply to copco]

Because your FT3 and FT4 levels were only mid range. When on NDT, it’s the FT3 level in particular—many of us on NDT find we feel better when our FT3 tests closer to the top of the laboratory reference range.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

How long have you been taking testosterone

These articles suggest….Testosterone affects iron levels

…….And high iron affects testosterone

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

prescriptionhope.com/blog-t...

[copco in reply to SlowDragon]

I'm not sure what to make of those articles. I've been taking testosterone on and off, initially as compounded, but currently as gel for several years. In 2016, when ferritin was 854, my total testosterone was 222 ng/dL below the range of 250-1100. More recently, I did get the testosterone up into the 600 and will test again soon. Ferritin is still high. So, I'm not sure if there is a connection. I'm sure there is a connection, but just not sure what it is.

[Jazzw in reply to copco]

If haemochromatosis has been ruled out then your doctor probably ought to have considered other possibilities.

The list includes the impact of excess alcohol consumption, metabolic syndrome, obesity, diabetes, liver disease, malignancy, infection or inflammation as causative factors.

If all of that has been checked out then it’s possible it’s normal for you—it might not be considered severe enough to be considered true haemochromatosis but you might simply have a genetic predisposition to absorbing more iron than most people do.