I did a Randox Female Hormone Test as NHS Endo refused to check Progesterone and Testosterone, and they don't believe in HRT. Until August 2022 I had been on HRT, Kliofem 2mg/ I mg , for more than 20 years. I was taken off it by my G.P. because of my age. I believe I have Pituitary Failure/ Central Hypothyroidism. This always follows the same pattern. It affects Growth Hormone First (I have an increase of 3 foot sizes as an adult). It then affects Gonadotrophins. (NHS Endo tests done considered fine) Then it affects Thyroid. Then it affects the Adrenals.
I am nearly 67, so post menopausal. My results are as follows:
Oestradiol, <18.4 pmol/L, range <505 Post Menopausal , so<3.64% Progesterone, 1.88 nmol/L, <0.401 Post Menopausal, so 470% ?????!!!!!!!(High , can be Adrenal Gland disorders) ACTH blood test was requested by NHS Endo but Blood Lab only did 9 a.m. Cortisol which was over-range, June 2023. Prolactin, 172 mIU/L, (102-496 Optimal) 17.77%. In June 2023 , this was over-range. SHBG , 110.00nmol/L (27.1-128 Optimal) 82.16%. If high , can inactivate Testosterone. Testosterone, 1.100 nmol/L (0.1-1.42 Optimal) 75.76% Is this quite inactive????? Free Androgen Index, 1.0 (0.19-3.63 Optimal) 23.55% Inactive testosterone??????? FSH, 62.8 u/L (25.8-134.8 Post M) 33.94% Low levels can be dysfunction of Pituitary Gland?? LH, 38 u/L (7.7-58.5 Post M) 59.65% Should BOTH FSH AND LH NOT BE HIGHER THAN THIS IN MENOPAUSE AND BE MORE EQUAL THAN THEY ARE????????????? Dysfunction of Pituitary,can lead to lower than normal LH which should be high in Menopause????
Do I need Estrogen , but without Progesterone? Do I need Testosterone? Overall, are my results not a bit odd? Comments welcome.
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I didn't know that. Thank you. Is that what I am likely to be told if I show the results to a "health professional". I have saliva kits for Estrogen, Progesterone and Testosterone in the house I had intended for a later date. Would they be considered to carry more weight? They instruct you to do them at a certain time of day. Estrogen and Progesterone sample at about 10 p.m. before bed. Trouble is I am a night owl and feel sure I have a flipped cortisol rhymn, but have not done a Saliva Cortisol test. Taking hormones would affect the test. The saliva Testosterone, they want done with no hormone intake within past 24 hours, go to bed before 11 p.m., rise no later than 8 a.m. They want saliva immediately on waking, 30 minutes after waking, and an hour after waking.
I'd suggest you would benefit from adding oestrogen which will also help lower your progesterone, all your other levels are good, your slightly high SHBG can be due to a little too much thyroid hormone?
I wrote a far too long reply for you that I have been working on for days and it has disappeared before I could send! You are absolutely right, thyroid hormones are high on my thyroid blood test taken from the same blood draw. Bearing in mind , that UNMEDICATED, I have had FT4 as high as 86.67% with in- range TSH 0.4 (0.2-5.0), and FT3 as high as 91.89% with in-range TSH 4.02 (0.27-4.2), these were my results on T4 liquid levo 68mcg+ T3 at 10 mcg, done at 12.10 p.m. ( for consistency) but other protocols followed. Full T4 dose taken 24 hrs before , along with 5 mcg of T3. The other 5 mcg T3 taken 8 hours before testing (felt horrible doing that):
I have the 2 DIO1 SNPS in "linkage disequilibrium" where I have 1 poor converter and 1 rapid converter. "T3 generation becomes independent of T4 supply. Not associated with TSH levels. Genetic variation in DIO genes alter enzyme function. LT4 mono therapy fails to provide appropriate TSH, FT4 and FT3 levels for a healthy state and combined T4/T3 necessary."
I also have Pde8B: "Expect high FT4 and low FT3 conversion of T4 to T3 in plasma and surrounding tissues. Aim for FT4 50% and FT3 75%." I have the other bad double mutations to do with signalling and any antibodies likely to be TRAB linked to Graves hyperthyroidism, which many of us have.
The private Endo just said I likely need T4 50 mcg, and T3 15 mcg. I feel really ill if I drop T4 below 68 mcg. I would have preferred to stick at 5 mcg T3 for 8 weeks when I started as there was definite benefit at 5 mcg. Because he said 15mcg T3, I thought I needed to at least go up to 10mcg T3 to see how it felt. I held the dose at 10 mcg T3 for the full 8 weeks before testing. The majority of the benefit I felt on 5 mcg T3, I lost on 10 mcg, although I do feel more wide-awake on 10mcg. I have maintained T4 dose at 68 mcg and dropped T3 to a very difficult to split -the-tablet, 7.5 mcg. In light of the above, does your gut say I should reduce T3 to 5mcg, or do 8 weeks at 7.5 mcg???? Do you think it is okay not to drop the T4 dose??
I would really welcome some guidance as to next dose to try and how to safely alter it. I take everything at 3 a.m. Split dosing makes me feel really ill as I have experimented taking doses at different times and split and not split. I have no ups and downs taking everything at 3 a.m.
If you felt better on 5mcg T3 then I would definitely drop back to that and maintain your T4 dose, I've no idea where Endo's get this idea of a target dose 😵💫 why they don't trust patients to stop on a dose they feel well on I will never know... they just don't trust us to know our own body!!
Sparklingsunshine If you have done a Randox Female Hormone Test, could you and Sparklingsunshine check to see if any number 1s printed in your results are very , very thin and faint, whilst all others are thick and dark throughout the report? I have all the symptoms of low Testosterone. My result for this was 1.100 nmol/L, but the two number 1s are very, very thin and faint. I'm suspicious. I thought from the start it didn't look right . If you stuck a period under each , turning it into an exclamation mark , that would look right. I asked Randox Customer Service a few questions re their tests before ordering them. The answers I got back then, didn't match or answer my questions! If I e mail them re. this query I don't expect to get a sensible reply in consequence. There is definately something strange how thin and faint this one result is, although the zeros on the end of it are thick and dark.
If I knew how to insert a copy or screenshot it would be clear what I mean. (I don't) It is only these 2 number ones that are different and are lighter and kind of half the width of the others. The exclamation marks you have printed , if were longer and without the dots underneath, show as lighter and half the width of all the other number ones in the report. Noticeably so.The other number ones throughout the report are as you state in the first line of your reply and noticeably darker throughout.
Where you have said "Your SHBG result would then look like etc.,etc"-if you remove the dots of the exclamation marks, and lengthen the bit above the dot, they appear lighter and less wide. Same very simple font throughout the report, as shown in first line of your reply.
I'll get in touch with them and see what they say. I can't explain it any other way. Thanks for trying to help, it's appreciated.
My testerone result as described in previous post and way more skinny and light- exactly like the exclamation mark you typed , but elongated, but without the dot.
I would say all your Luteal Phase number ones are the same.
I just got a printed report, eventually. I've never used Randox before and probably wont again. We ended up having to provide an old email address my husband just keeps as a back up.
Our main email wouldnt accept it for whatever reason. My husband works in IT and is very security conscious so maybe our anti virus software was blocking. It was a lot of hassle though. I was chasing results for days.
I've got no idea of thick or thin lines lol. Just the numbers and ranges.
My private consultant (although regular job is NHS) does do blood tests and thinks they are useful post menopause as levels more stable so would not discount them.
Then as TiggerMe said.
They only seem to use/ are familiar with blood tests not saliva but that does not mean saliva is a bad idea (supposed to give useful results, just different to blood) and especially for cortisol. It is just likely conventional doctor wont know what to do with saliva test results.
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ADRENAL GLAND SALIVA TEST RESULTS
Some help with test results please.
I'm hoping someone will be able to help with all my results. 
HRT newbie help! NHS appointment, finally!
High levels of estrogen.
