Latest blood results - please help.: Hiya, I've... - Thyroid UK

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Latest blood results - please help.

mids_thyman profile image
3 Replies

Hiya,

I've just had my private blood test results back and have the following:

TSH: 3.7 (TSH levels normal (normal range 0.27 - 4.2 mU/L). Increased from 0.98 6 months ago.

FT4: 18.6 (normal range 12 - 22 pmol/L). Was 19.3 6 months ago.

FT3: 4.8 (normal range 3.1 - 6.8 pmol/L). Was 4.9 6 months ago.

So, it looks as though my TSH has increased quite a bit. I've previously not been impressed by my doctor, who considers that everything is fine if in normal range and won't change Levo dose. When I've tried to convince him TSH should be closer to 1 he's refused to change it (this is when my TSH was closer to 2.39).

I'm currently taking 75mcg/day of Levo - 50mcg prescribed by my doctor, and an extra 25mcg I get privately and added a year ago to get it closer to 1, which was working.

Now that I've gone back up to 3.7 I figure I should increase my Levo from 75mcg, but not sure how much by. I appreciate its trial and error but need somewhere to start. What do folks reckon, an extra 25mcg? An extra 50mcg? And then retest obviously :-)

Cheers in advance,

Mids_thyman.

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greygoose profile image
greygoose

Never increase levo by more than 25 mcg every six weeks. So, yes, 25 mcg for now, and you might need more later. :)

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator

so increase to 100mcg daily and retest including vitamin levels at next test

Recommended that all thyroid blood tests early morning, ideally just before 9am, only drink water between waking and test and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)

Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or all relevant vitamins

Post all about what time of day to test

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

Testing options and includes money off codes for private testing

thyroiduk.org/testing/

Medichecks Thyroid plus BOTH TPO and TG antibodies and vitamins

medichecks.com/products/adv...

Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes BOTH TPO and TG antibodies, cortisol and vitamins

bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...

Only do private testing early Monday or Tuesday morning.

Link about thyroid blood tests

thyroiduk.org/testing/thyro...

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

thyroiduk.org/signs-and-sym...

Tips on how to do DIY finger prick test

support.medichecks.com/hc/e...

Medichecks and BH also offer private blood draw at clinic near you, or private nurse to your own home…..for an extra fee

Monitor My Health also now offer thyroid and vitamin testing, plus cholesterol and HBA1C for £65

(Doesn’t include thyroid antibodies)

monitormyhealth.org.uk/full...

10% off code here

thyroiduk.org/testing/priva...

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator

looking at other posts

You have type 1 diabetes, so presumably your hypothyroidism is autoimmune too ?

Low vitamin levels are especially common with autoimmune thyroid disease

14 stone = 89 kilo approx

Even if we frequently start on only 50mcg, most people need to increase levothyroxine dose slowly upwards in 25mcg steps (retesting 6-8 weeks after each increase) until eventually on, or near full replacement dose (typically 1.6mcg levothyroxine per kilo of your weight per day)

pathlabs.rlbuht.nhs.uk/tft_...

Guiding Treatment with Thyroxine:

In the majority of patients 50-100 μg thyroxine can be used as the starting dose. Alterations in dose are achieved by using 25-50 μg increments and adequacy of the new dose can be confirmed by repeat measurement of TSH after 2-3 months.

The majority of patients will be clinically euthyroid with a ‘normal’ TSH and having thyroxine replacement in the range 75-150 μg/day (1.6ug/Kg on average).

The recommended approach is to titrate thyroxine therapy against the TSH concentration whilst assessing clinical well-being. The target is a serum TSH within the reference range.

……The primary target of thyroxine replacement therapy is to make the patient feel well and to achieve a serum TSH that is within the reference range. The corresponding FT4 will be within or slightly above its reference range.

The minimum period to achieve stable concentrations after a change in dose of thyroxine is two months and thyroid function tests should not normally be requested before this period has elapsed.

Some people need a bit less than guidelines, some a bit more

TSH should be under 2 as an absolute maximum when on levothyroxine

gponline.com/endocrinology-...

Graph showing median TSH in healthy population is 1-1.5

web.archive.org/web/2004060...

Comprehensive list of references for needing LOW TSH on levothyroxine

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu....

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi...

If symptoms of hypothyroidism persist despite normalisation of TSH, the dose of levothyroxine can be titrated further to place the TSH in the lower part of the reference range or even slightly below (i.e., TSH: 0.1–2.0 mU/L), but avoiding TSH < 0.1 mU/L. Use of alternate day dosing of different levothyroxine strengths may be needed to achieve this (e.g., 100 mcg for 4 days; 125 mcg for 3 days weekly).

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