CT with Contrast dye

[raglansleeve]

I'm having a CT soon with contrast dye, and am worried on two fronts.

1. Will the dye affect my hypo state, and if so, could it make me more hypo, or swing me onto the hyper symptom side?

2. My eGFR is low (59), so I'm worried on the kidney front too. I've always been low-ish (60-65), even going back to blood work done 40 years ago, in my 20's.

I've read that drinking a lot of water both before and after might help, but how much water and for how long? I'd love to hear experiences from forum members on this topic.

[radd]

raglansleeve,

In 2021 I had a CT with contrast and recently an MRI with contrast. I drink a lot of water anyway and didn’t have any ill effects from the dye.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Low GFR frequently linked to being hypothyroid

Kidney function and thyroid 

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

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

The GFR is reversibly reduced (by about 40%) in more than 55% of adults with hypothyroidism[40] due to several reasons.

[raglansleeve in reply to SlowDragon]

Yes, I had read that after learning so much about my hypothyroidism on this forum. It's one of the few things that never improved though, even after titrating my dosage up to the best it can be.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to raglansleeve]

How much are you taking

What are your most recent TSH, Ft4 and Ft3 results

Are vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 levels optimal

[raglansleeve in reply to SlowDragon]

I'm taking 88 Synthroid and 10 Cytomel per day, and all vitamins are optimal (was low on B12 and D3 when first diagnosed back in 2018). I'm now two days past my contrast dye experience and just developed a rapid heartbeat. Not sure if it's related or not, because it only came on two days after the fact?

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to raglansleeve]

could be

Or could be covid?

Or just coincidence

Do you wear a Fitbit or Apple Watch or similar

[raglansleeve in reply to SlowDragon]

No illness of any kind, so can't imagine it could be COVID. It's down again now, so hopefully, just a coincidence. I wasn't doing anything at all, but just felt a bit short of breath and the heart rate was up in the 120's (usually in the 70's). No fit watch, but have been thinking of getting one. Thanks for the reply.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to raglansleeve]

Definitely worth getting a watch

Can be useful tool if medics want to reduce your dose ….if you normally have very low heart rate

I had irregular palpitations first few hours after developing Covid…..but disappeared next day

[Regenallotment Ambassador]

hi, I called the X-ray department to ask about this, they switched me to MRI with gardolinium contrast on the grounds of ‘poorly managed thyroid’ which made my GP sit up 😬. I posted a similar question some time ago and some folks said they were fine, others said they were sick for weeks following, I couldn’t take the risk with working full time. If I have another one I’ll go CT and iodine and drink gallons as recommended 👍 let us know what they say. 🌱

[raglansleeve in reply to Regenallotment]

Nice that your GP realized that your condition was serious after that! My surgeon first wanted an MRI, not a CT scan, but thought that the wait time for the MRI would be so much longer and put in an order for the CT instead. If you had the MRI with gadolinium, why do you think that you'd go with the CT and iodine next time? Did you have a bad time with that option?

[Brightness14]

There is no a new contrast I was reading about it a few weeks ago. Sorry, can't remember the details. It should be done by weight too. I would mention the fact about your kidney too. Drink lots of water. I have several of these done over the years without a thyroid to no ill effect.

[helvella in reply to Brightness14]

Is that a new contrast for MRI or for CT/X-ray?

[Brightness14 in reply to helvella]

Its' for MRI and FDA approved I don't know about here in Eurpoe. Name similar but Gadopiclenot.

[helvella in reply to Brightness14]

Thank you! I think it might be this (approved in USA 2022):

Gadopiclenol

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadop...

[raglansleeve in reply to Brightness14]

I read something recently about a new dye too, but suspect that my hospital is probably still working with the old one. Very good to hear that you haven't had any bad effects. Thank you for posting your experience.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

I had a CT scan with iodine a couple of months ago, didn't affect anything for me (I'm hypo, non Hashi's). Was told to drink plenty of water and apart from one coffee per day I only drink water anyway so maybe had 2 litres a day for the next couple of days.

[raglansleeve in reply to SeasideSusie]

I have one cup of tea daily, half a cup of orange juice and only water other than that. I intend to drink more than usual after the test, and if a couple of days worked for you, I will use that as a guideline. Thanks for the response to my question!