I am a 74 year old female of, normally, very good health apart from a persistent zinc deficiency which I treat with prescription zinc medication.
During and following a chest infection, which was treated with antibiotics just after Christmas, I had a painful lump in my neck. My doctor asked to see me in two weeks when it had reduced in size but was still there. She had ordered blood tests and I give you the results below. She, on the basis of these has sent me to ear, nose and throat for scans and for a CT scan of chest, abdomen and pelvis. I presume she is looking for a tumour.
My question is about the thyroid results. At the scan of my neck the radiographer asked if I had ever had any thyroid problems. She commented that there was a small lump but she was not concerned.
Urea and Electrolytes - all within the normal range
Thyroid Function Test. - Serum TSH level 1.92 mu/L (0.35 - 4.94) Marked as "abnormal" by the lab.
Serum C Reactive Protein Level 7 mg/L (0.0 - 5.0) ditto
Liver Function Test - Serum Bilirubin level 7 umol/L (>21.0)
The predominance of Hashimoto thyroiditis represents an interesting finding, since it has been indirectly confirmed by an Italian study, showing that autoimmune thyroid disease is a risk factor for the evolution towards NCGS in a group of patients with minimal duodenal inflammation. On these bases, an autoimmune stigma in NCGS is strongly supported
In summary, whereas it is not yet clear whether a gluten free diet can prevent autoimmune diseases, it is worth mentioning that HT patients with or without CD benefit from a diet low in gluten as far as the progression and the potential disease complications are concerned
Despite the fact that 5-10% of patients have Celiac disease, in my experience and in the experience of many other physicians, at least 80% + of patients with Hashimoto's who go gluten-free notice a reduction in their symptoms almost immediately.
Similarly few months later consider trying dairy free too. Approx 50-60% find dairy free beneficial
With loads of vegan dairy alternatives these days it’s not as difficult as in the past
I'm not sure why your thyroid result for TSH has been marked as abnormal, as its under 2 and looking fairly average to me.
That said, it might be a good idea to buy a private blood test to check FT4 & FT3 as TSH is only a small part of a thyroid panel and not enough to make a full assessment of your thyroid function.
Private tests are available, see link for companies offering private blood tests & discount codes, some offer a blood draw service at an extra cost. thyroiduk.org/testing/priva...
There is also a new company offering walk in& mail order blood tests in London, Kent, Sussex & Surrey areas. Check to see if there is a blood test company near you. onedaytests.com/products/ul...
Only do private tests on a Monday or Tuesday to avoid postal delays.
Recommended blood test protocol: Test at 9am (or as close as possible), fasting & no biotin containing supplements for 3-7 days (Biotin can interfere with thyroid blood results as it is used in the testing process).
Thank you for such a prompt replies. I must say I wondered the same thing about the thyroid results. My GP is one of the good guys (so far) so I will see what the results are from the scans and then put some efforts into getting some more blood work done privately.
One thing that jumped out for me was your very high platelet count. It indicates inflammation but also, if continues , you should be taking blood thinners to guard against potential strokes. My doctor told me to ignore high platelet count and then I had a stroke . In fact I had two strokes in a space of givecyears; both happened when I stopped taking blood thinners. I cannot take aspirin or any synthetic form of blood thinner as they make me feel very ill. I settled on pure gingko biloba extract 120 mg, split into two doses daily which I purchase myself. I don’t wish to alarm you but do check your platelet count in the next blood test; if your lump has resolved, they may have come down.m, but if they continue to be high, start taking blood thinners. I recommend Gingko Biloba extract , free of additives. The doctors don’t know about this, so you may have to advocate for yourself. I am exactly the same age as you and learned that one has to use plenty of own initiative to feel well, or better; doctors should be consulted but not relied on too much. All the best.
High platelets can be another indicator of iron deficiency anemia, along with the low hemoglobin. As others pointed out, ferritin can be “falsely high” with inflammation. You really need a full iron panel to determine this. Low zimc levels may also accompany anemia and needs to be considered as related to copper levels; copper and zinc need to be in balance.
Thanks for the further replies. I have a few things, now, to follow up. I have had copper checked before and it was slightly high because the zinc was low. I had a massive result today, when taking husband for a CT scan, I mentioned that I was on the urgent list for one too. The receptionist then phoned around and managed to get me in for my CT scan with contrast of the chest, abdo and pelvis. Fingers crossed for the results. Blood test coming up in a week, I think, so I will see if I can get the zinc checked as it has not been checked for a while now.
I can't understand why so many of your results are marked as Abnormal when they quite clearly are not (apart from the CRP and the antibodies which are over the range)
I wondered that too and it was part of my reason for coming on here. I will ask my GP at my next appointment.
Just to give a bit of good news - I took my husband to hospital for a CT scan yesterday. Whilst booking in it was mentioned that, though he was early, they could scan right away. Something was said about a DNA so I piped up with a jokey "I am waiting for a scan" comment. The next thing I know is that they are doing my scan! 😀
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