TSH and T4 numbers

[starlight78]

What's a normal TSH level and a normal T4 number?

[Starfish123]

If you ask most doctors they would reply anything within range. If you ask most patients they would say at the point they feel well. It's a hard one to answer as everyone is different. Most feel better when TSH is about 1 and T4 is in the upper range. I'm feeling awful and my TSH was 1.25 last week.

[starlight78 in reply to Starfish123]

I just had my doctor print out a copy of my results. It says abnormal. My TSH is 5.290 and T4 is 13.0. Finding it hard to understand.

[shaws Administrator in reply to starlight78]

starlight

In different areas of the country, labs who do the thyroid gland blood tests have different ranges. You wouldn't believe it. Therefore each time you have a blood test, always get a copy of the results from your surgery to keep for your own records. You are entitled.

Is your GP prescribing levothyroxine for you? What dose?

Any blood tests we have there is always a range and it is in brackets. The following is an example tsh of 4.4 (0.3-5.5)

[starlight78 in reply to shaws]

It says TSH 5.290 (0.3-5.0) and T4 13.0 (11.0-23.0). I've no medication or anything.

[shaws Administrator in reply to starlight78]

If you are having symptoms, and your TSH is at your level he should prescribe levothyroxine. The rules by the British Thyroid Association say they should wait till the TSH reaches 10 but I find that quite brutal and it is very cruel not to prescribe to ease people's clinical symptoms. Some GP's will prescribe at your level.

This is re a doctor who treats patients as he was taught as a trainee doctor by clinical symptoms of thyroid gland problems and the GeneraL Medical Council has hauled him before them several times because the British Thyroid Association do not like him flaunting their rules, thus their guidelines make people more unwell.

worldthyroidregister.com/

Your TSH is high and your T4 is low which should be towards the higher end.

[tulula59 in reply to shaws]

It is a pity that so much controvesy surrounds this issue.

My TSH has been rising since 2009 - now at 2.4 (0.5 - 5.0) and my FT4 dropping now at 11.7 (9 - 24). They didn't want to know despite being very symptomatic too.

I pushed for ft3 and antibodies. Anti bods were neg and ft3 came back high at 6 (0.3 - 5.7) so they have now said that despite rising TSH and v low ft4 my ft3 is great so I'm doing the job myself.

After all they say, its the t3 that does the work not the t4. (The fact that I'm compensating for the low t4 is understood - possibly overworking tissues to produce enough t3 rather than get it direct from t4).

My point in this partiuclar question thread is if they treated starlight with meds - what's to say that she isn't producing enough ft3 anyway so upping the t4 available would surely increase ft3 as well no?

Is it better to have low ft4 and over produce your own ft3 (somehow) or to have high ft4 and maybe overload ft3?

And anyway, if compensation for lack of t4 is covered by producing lots of t3 ourselves then why would someone be symptomatic at all?

I do understand the concept of balance and that normally we make 80:20 for t4 to t3 but is it possible to live healthily on just t3 - sort of bypass the t4 stage which is what I seem to be doing right now?

[lynmynott Partner Thyroid UK in reply to tulula59]

I think Dr P believes that a high FT3 level could mean that there is an adrenal connection. Perhaps get an adrenal saliva test done?

[tulula59 in reply to lynmynott]

Thanks Lynne

Am waiting for my private bloods back from Genova and have the adrenal kit here waiting to be used.

Thanks for that.

[PinkNinja in reply to tulula59]

You might want to get iron, B12, folate and vitamin D looked at too. It might be that you are converting almost too readily because you don't have enough in your system (kind of compensating for low thyroid hormones) or perhaps you are not using the T3 in your cells as well as you should be.

I'm afraid I don't know enough about this but you it would be a good idea to get the above tests done as low iron and B12 are believed to make it more difficult for your cells to use thyroid hormones.

[Hidden in reply to tulula59]

If you look at this site you will see that some doctors who have great success with treating hypothyroid patients believe that treatment with T3 alone can be the best way to go.

web.archive.org/web/2010122..., and look at the question for 12th July 2010.

Other doctors in the USA are also happy to administer T3 alone and there are people on this site who do just that. It is T3 that the body needs. As Dr. Lowe says T4 is merely the storage unit for thyroid needs and this has to be converted to T3 for use in the body. This is only possible under the right conditions and some people have difficulty with conversion and/or absorption.

If you are feeling better on T3 alone that is absolutely fine. It is your symptoms that are the important thing here not figures derived from a test tube.

Jane x x

[mackey930]

Hi iv been really poorly.went 2 my my doctors today and he said iv improved greatly because my tsh level was 128 when diagnosed and now at 28.i dont feel much better

[Clarebear in reply to mackey930]

Goodness I'm not surprised that you still feel ill. Your TSH is still way too high. Most people seem to feel well when their TSH is under one. Has your doctor increased your thyroxine? I certainly hope so. Xx

[Soldieress]

Hi Starfish 123, I found this sit useful when I was first trying to understand test results: patient.co.uk/doctor/thyroi...

Hope you find it useful too.

Best of luck

[starlight78]

Thank you for all your responses. I find it all very confusing and I'm very unsure as to what to do in regards to doctors, I find most of them very intimidating. I've already got a blood disorder, porphyria, that took them 19 years to diagnose correctly.

[Hidden in reply to starlight78]

Hi starlight.

I find GPs intimidating too. I'm going to write everything down next time I go and see them so that I can't become tongue-tied with the stress or forget everything. It's then that I end up babbling.

Good luck.