TSH dropped but so did T4

[VeronaFlowers]

Hi, could anyone shed some light. In May I was diagnosed as subclinical Hypo. With TSH at 19 and T4 at 10.6, I went back a weeks later for the same blood tests as I was poorly the first time and thought there may have been a mistake. My TSH was 10 and t4 slightly higher than before. I just got new results and my T4 is 9.9 and TSH is 14. I'm confused as to why my TSH has dropped but m thyroid is producing less hormone. I am not on any medication. Just started a gluten free diet and am trying to get to the root cause of my hashimotos. Any info/advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanking you in advance.

[shaws Administrator]

Did you have your blood tests as early as possible and fasting. This keeps the TSH at its highest as it drops throughout the day. Food also might interfere with it.

Also with antibodies, sometimes your antibodies will be too much making you feel hyper and at others hypo.

Always get a print-out of your results with the ranges. Labs differ and it makes it easier to comment

If you've not ask for B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate ask for these too as we can be deficient which will also cause symptoms.

[VeronaFlowers in reply to shaws]

Thank you for your response. My Ferritin is 14. Was told I had mild anaemia and slightly low iron. B12 but D etc were all fine. So I wasn't told bit to eat when getting bloods so ate one or two of the times. So My TSH could be higher due to the food I ate and also the time of day? I was wondering f there was a underlying issue/cause. Which is why I haven't started the meds yet. I took Levo for 5 days after my second blood results and felt much worse than before. Was having hot flushes, itching heavy arms and also was finding it difficult to learn my scripts (I am an actor) so I stopped taking the meds. I'm hoping I don't deteriorate rapidly as it seems my t4 dropped quickly from my first bloods.

I have changed my diet and want to see if this helps. I want to try as much as possible before going for the meds. Also taking Selenium, L- glutamine and B complex as heard these help.

[shaws Administrator in reply to VeronaFlowers]

Levothyroxine isn't a 'medication' it is a life-giving hormone and that's why hypothyroid patients are given free prescriptions for life if diagnosed as hypo. Untreated or undertreated can lead to serious consequences which we don't want.

Doctors have to follow guidelines but once we are on levo or other thyroid hormones the aim is a TSH of 1 or lower. The aim is relief of symptoms.

Fasting before the blood tests (doctors don't know this fact) it keeps the TSH highest as they are apt to adjust levothyroxine according to the TSH result and if it's low they reduce levo often unnecessarily so and we feel worse. We want a stable dose for at least six weeks before the next rise in hormones. If we take levo, food can interfere with the uptake of the hormone (it is T4 the inactive hormone and should convert to T3 (the active hormone required in all of our receptor cells and our brain contains the most).

(I am not medically qualified but am hypothyroid which was undiagnosed and untreated).

[shaws Administrator in reply to shaws]

Always get a print-out of your blood test results with the ranges (labs differ and it makes it easier to comment) and post for comments.

Someone will respond re ferritin and B12. It is recommended that B12 be around 1,000 as new research suggests that number to avoid neruological damage.

[Hidden in reply to shaws]

Incidentally I had a hospital test today and made my first request for my results, as I have learned that they are ours by law.

The response? Its not the Hospital Trusts policy to do that?

Any comments? Any regs I can quote to insist I get my results in future?

Thanks in advance

⚽️

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

Write a new post asking specifically about the refusal to give you your results. They are breaking he law, and there are things you can do about it. Others more knowledgeable on the subject will reply.

[Treepie in reply to Hidden]

You want these results not just future results.Inform the CE that this policy is a breach of the Data Protection Act and unless the results and ranges are supplied you will take the matter further.

[shaws Administrator in reply to Hidden]

I think (only a guess) that they send reports to GP who then can give you a copy. If every hospital patient asked for copies, it might be impossible.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to shaws]

That might be how they expect it to work in practice, but it is clearly a duty of the data controller to provide access. The data controller for a hospital should be identifiable.

Bear in mind that GP surgeries probably could not cope with all the data that might be involved - digital scans, MRIs, etc. - which would need to be copied to media such as DVDs. A summary might very well not be enough for the individual's request.

I have been involved in obtaining an MRI scan which was put onto a DVD. This was needed so that an outside consultant could have access to the actual scan itself. The DVD included a software viewer which is likely to be essential for anyone outside in order to be able to access the image(s). They can be in specialised formats which are not accessible using ordinary software like PDF readers.

[jimh111]

TSH fluctuates a little during the day and these assays are only accurate within a few percent. TSH rises rapidly as fT4 falls and if your fT4 figure is a few percent out it could alter the TSH figure a fair bit. I would not take any notice of small percentage changes in the blood test results. TSH numbers become more meaningful when it is much lower.