Thank you for your in depth reply, I'm beginning to understand more about thyroids!
I will ask gp to check vit levels too. My test was done at 9.30am and I hadn't eaten anything before the test.
Do you know anything about why we have these tpo antibodies and why it is considered 'normal' to have them under 60?
Just wondering if this might be an early indication of autoimmune and the levels might continue to rise over time.
Otherwise, I'm not sure what could be causing my thyroid to be dysfunctional. I have the following symptoms which may or may not be thyroid related: tiredness, feeling cold, horizontal ridges in nails, heart palpitations and general feeling of anxiety all the damn time.
just to explain about the lab range for your TPOab (Thyroid Peroxidase antibodies) test .
[0-60] is the amount of thyroid peroxidase antibodies that are found in healthy people.
You don't have a 'positive' result for Thyroid Peroxidase antibodies as 42 is well within the level expected for humans .
a positive result for TPOab (on this test) would be "anything over 60" .
Hashimoto's patients often have hundreds (or even thousands) of TPOab .
However .. having a negative TPOab result does not completely rule out hashimoto's ( autoimmune thyroid disease)
There is another thyroid antibody (that the NHS do not usually test for in hypothyroidism ) called TGab (Thyroglobulin antibodies).. these can sometimes be raised in Hashimoto's even though TPOab are normal ... but NHS will not accept them as diagnostic of hashimoto's because they can be raised for other reasons .
(and occasionally ,people have been found to have hashimoto's damage to their thyroid without having evidence that either TPOab or TGab were raised)
But to put your mind at rest about your TPOab of 42 ~nobody has" 0" TPOab ~ Thyroid {Peroxidase antibodies are part of the normal healthy function of the body
They are there to help clean things up .
it is only when there are "lots more than expected" that it indicates a problem .
A Raised (positive) TPOab result shows that there is "more thyroid Peroxidase to clean up than is normal", and this is usually because the thyroid has been damaged by the immune system ,
Thyroid Peroxidase is within the thyroid , but when the immune system ( lymphocytes ) damage the thyroid , then thyroid peroxidase gets 'spilled' and the TPOab fasten to the stuff that is spilled ~(like marker labels) ~ saying "clean this up , it shouldn't be here "
Thyroid Peroxidase antibodies are not what attacks/ damages the thyroid in autoimmune thyroid disease( hashimoto's )...... the immune system does that .... they come along afterwards and help clean up the mess .
Oh my goodness thank you for this explanation! I've been so confused about the antibodies and couldn't find anything online about it🤔. I do have a tendency to worry excessively about my health, but this helps to explain things.
I will do that. I don't think there are any close fam members with autoimmune, I have an aunt who is coeliac. I will say that I have a very stressful life and struggle with mental health so maybe that's causing some of my thyroid issues.
Just to add as a fellow newbie. It looks like stress, shocks such as bone breaks, accidents or family loss can all kick off the autoimmune response. I track my hypothyroidism to a nasty bout of shingles. Take your time to read informative posts here and try not to frighten yourself. There's lots of knowledgeable folk plus shared experiences and advice.
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