Hi everyone I need to complete a reverse T3 blood test , I usually use medichecks but they do not do this particular test. I have been informed by them that no other online company does this test.
Your suggestions on where I can go to get this test done would be really appreciated.
Many thanks for all your excellent help to date 😄😄
Is there a particular reason why you want a reverse T3 test? It can't tell you anything different that testing TSH, FT4 and FT3 tells you, it's an expensive test and takes about 3 weeks to get the result as it's sent to the US to process.
Testing can tell you if your rT3 is high but it can't tell you why it's high.
High rT3 can be caused by many things, only one of which has anything to do with the thyroid and that's when there is an excess of unconverted T4 and you will know this from the FT4 and FT3 results, you don't need a rT3 test to show this
High rT3 could be caused by low ferritin, by an infection, by low-calorie diets, selenium or zinc deficiency, cortisol issues, stress, dieting, chronic illness, inadequate or low iron, chronic inflammation, high cortisol, or liver issues and any other chronic health issues, and probably several more things.
Other conditions that contribute to increased Reverse T3 levels include:
· Chronic fatigue
· Acute illness and injury
· Chronic disease
· Increased cortisol (stress)
· Low cortisol (adrenal fatigue)
· Low iron
· Lyme disease
· Chronic inflammation
Also selenium deficiency, excess physical, mental and environmental stresses. Also Beta-blocker long-term use such as propranolol, metoprolol, etc. Physical injury is a common cause of increased RT3, also illnesses like the flu. Starvation/severe calorie restriction is known to raise RT3. Diabetes when poorly treated is known to increase RT3. Cirrhosis of the liver. Fatty liver disease. Any other liver stress Renal Failure. A fever of unknown cause. Detoxing of high heavy metals.
Articles
thyroidpatients.ca/2019/01/...
zrtlab.com/blog/archive/rev...
verywellhealth.com/reverse-...
I understand that reverse T3 doesn't hang around long because it eventually converts to T2, etc, so it's not necessarily a problem. See article by Paul Robinson here:
paulrobinsonthyroid.com/rev...
thank you for the detailed information. My private consultant requested it as it looks like I have a conversion problem from T4 to T3 . He is based in London over 200 miles from where I live so I normally use medichecks who don’t offer it any more and do a zoom consultation as this is much cheaper. Do you know if I can get it done on the NHS via GP? If not I will just provide the normal advanced thyroid blood test and go from there. Thanks again SeasideSusie
My private consultant requested it as it looks like I have a conversion problem from T4 to T3
That's all you need. High FT4 + low FT3 = poor conversion.
Good conversion takes place when T4:T3 ratio is 4:1 or less, poor conversion is above 4:1.
For example (providing units of measurement are the same
FT4 - 21 (12-22) = 90% through range
FT3 - 3.5 (3.1-6.8) = 10.81% through range
The percentages and results show high FT4 and low FT3.
Ratio of F4:FT3 - 21 divided by 3.5 = 6:1
The above shows poor conversion.
Below shows good conversion:
FT4: 20 (12-22) = 80% through range
FT3: 6 (3.1-6.8) = 78.38% through range
The percentages and results show well balanced hormone levels
Ratio of FT4:FT3 - 20 divided by 6 = 3.3 : 1
So no need for an expensive reverse T3 test when you can find out from your FT4 and FT3 results whether there is an excess of unconverted T4 causing high reverse T3.
hi SeasideSusie I see what you mean . So my T4 is 19.06 and T3 is 4.7 so unless I did the calculation wrong it is just over 4:1?? I was never very good with maths ! If that is the case I don’t have a conversion problem. My TSH is 0.04 on Levo so consultant doesn’t want to increase it
hi SeasideSusie I made a mistake my T4 is 19.6 but I don’t think it makes a great difference to ratios
Have you got the reference ranges for your FT4 and FT3 so we can look at their percentage through range too. You're ratio is a bit borderline at 4.05 : 1
I assume you're taking Levo only, that's the only way you can work out if you convert well or not, it doesn't work if you take NDT or Levo plus T3.
My TSH is 0.04 on Levo so consultant doesn’t want to increase it
Why? Is he scaremongering about atrial fibrilation and osteoporosis? He's probably like most doctors who don't understand that a suppressed TSH is not necessarily a problem. It could be if FT3 was over range but we have lots of evidence that if FT3 is within range then a suppressed TSH is not a problem, check out this post by tattybogle
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Kayakingkim ...The one in SeasideSusies link is useful if TSH is over 0.4/0.5 , but this one is better when TSH is 'very' low healthunlocked.com/thyroidu.... useful-evidence-that-tsh-between-0.04-0.4-has-no-increased-risk-to-patients-on-levothyroxine-as-long-as-ft4-and-ft3-are-in-range-.
the first paper on this post is no use for getting an increase if your TSH is 0.04 , ( because it shows the risks did increase below that level ) ..but there are other papers listed on there that showed no increase in bone loss with deliberately supressed TSH. etc
Thanks tatty, I'm not quite with it at the moment and thought that was the one but didn't check!
hi SeasideSusie and tattybogle thanks for the helpful links. So I think I need a combination of Levo and t3 meds. Currently my T4 is 79% and T3 45% with TSH 0.04. I am on Levo only which was slightly reduced when my TSH dropped to 0.03. Before the reduction my Levo was still just a fraction over 79% and my t3 55% and I had less thyroid symptoms. Need to get my t3 up a bit looks like that’s less risk to bones as well
thanks Mollyfan just had a look it is very expensive! Will double check with consultant to see if it is really necessary. At least I know where to go to get it if needed
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