thyroid hypothyroidism

[teejay]

thyroid

Free T4 is 26.2 is this ok

[DippyDame]

Do you have the reference range please?

[teejay in reply to DippyDame]

yes its 12.00 to 22.00 tgey didn’t do ft3

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

teejayBesides needing the reference range it's also important to look at FT3 level in relation to the FT4, and if you have TSH result as well (all done from same blood draw) it gives a complete picture.

Did you do the test as we always advise :

* No later than 9am

* Nothing to eat or drink except water before the test

* Last dose of Levo 24 hours before the test

* No biotin or any supplement containing Biotin (eg B Complex) for 3-7 days before the test

[teejay in reply to SeasideSusie]

This is all I got today, did everything right, only water, no meds for 24 hours, just wondered if im safe at 26.2 for free t4 , I’m on 150 levo

Bloods

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to teejay]

just wondered if im safe at 26.2 for free t4 ,

It's impossible to say without the reference range, it's higher than the top limit of any range we normally see here.

Is that a print out of your results from your surgery? If so the range should be there, usually to the right hand side of the result. If it isn't you could ask your surgery or phone the lab, a result without a range is, I'm afraid, meaningless, we just can't interpret it.

[teejay in reply to SeasideSusie]

oh yes sorry the range is 12.00 - 22.00

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to teejay]

So your FT4 level of 26.2 with a range of 12-22 shows that it is a fair bit over range. What has your GP said? One would expect that you've been told to reduce your dose of Levo.

What you need to know is how well you convert T4 to T3, you might need a high FT4 to produce a reasonable amount of T3 in which case that would show that your conversion is poor. So you need to have TSH, FT4 and FT3 all tested at the same time. You also need to have key nutrients tested as these all need to be at optimal levels for thyroid hormone to work properly and good conversion to take place. So ask for Vit D, B12, Folate and Ferritin to be tested. Optimal levels are:

Vit D: 100-150nmol/L

B12: at least 550pg/ml (or 405pmol/L), preferably top of range

Folate: at least half way through range

Ferritin: half way through range although some experts say the optimal level for thyroid function is 90-110ug/L.

If key nutrients are optimal with such a high FT4 and a low FT3 then that would mean your conversion is poor and you may benefit from T3. T3 has to be initiated by an endocrinologist.

[teejay in reply to SeasideSusie]

oh thank you very much, will get back to drs

[Bearo]

Testing 12 weeks after a dose increase my FT4 went slightly over range and my FT3 was at the top of the range. I decided to reduce my dose myself rather than have my prescription reduced. I skip a tablet once a week. I did the maths to see what my average intake would be across the week. This did the trick or bringing my FT4 and FT3 down a bit.

(The GP never called me about being over range.)