Thyroid Results

[happygirl]

I got some blood work back today and some of the ones that I had questions about are my autoimmune thyroid:

thyroglobulin AB: 62 (less than 20 is normal)

thryoid peroxidase AB: 62 (less than 35 is normal)

I didn't have my tsh/t3/t4 run this time because they are ALWAYS normal....so what does this mean? Please help!

Thanks so much,

Laura

[georgie]

I got some blood work back today and some of the ones that I had questions about are my autoimmune thyroid:

thyroglobulin AB: 62 (less than 20 is normal)

thryoid peroxidase AB: 62 (less than 35 is normal)

You have Thyroid Antibodies which means you have autoimmune low Thyroid. Your thyroid is under attack from these antibodies and will eventually get damaged and lose function. I am not sure which autoimmune thyroid it is. My TPO was 35 and my thyroid function was very severe and low so you don't always need a # in the 1000s to be ill. I have Hashimotos Thyroid. Once you have an autoimmune thyroid - the reg labs don't mean a lot. They change all the time as the attacks happen. You need a Dr that can work with you and understand autoimmune thyroid.

Don't be scared but do some research. stopthethyroidmadness can help a lot like they helped me. I would guess you need Armour ??? I think the idea is to suppress the antibodies so they don't cause any damage. Celiac is autoimmune - so its common to have a couple of autoimmune problems at the same time. Once you have one you tend to have others. Did you get a Celiac dx ?

[happygirl]

Thanks. I am confused as to how they tell what my problem is if my TSH, T3 and T4 came back normal in the spring. (I just started with a new doctor and he ran the autoimmune). How do they tell if its hyper or hypo?

See my signature about Celiac.

[georgie]

My TSH, Free T4, and Free T3 always came back as normal too. Or at least TSH did as thats all they ever did until I asked for Frees to be tested too. But on closer look my FreeT4 was 1 point away from low normal. I think with Hashis - you don't really dose to TSH again if you use Armour. You just keep an eye on Frees - and dose to symptoms. My Dr keeps testing my blood every couple of months but isn't that fussed about it. She is more interested in how I feel. So ... I am just increasing Armour slowly every month and waiting to see if I go hyper - which isn't yet. My Free T3 is way over range and TSH is practically 0 but Dr isn't using that. Hyper is shown by increased pulse, temps, etc - so she is using that more. Once the Antibodies get suppressed by finding the correct Armour dose 'for you' -you won't get the erratic hypo/ hyper swings. You will stabilise. Some Dr get scared of a TSH at 0 as they have been trained that it causes osteoporous. On Synthroid it does - but Armour has calcitonin that actually improves bone density. I have read of some that have reversed their osteoporous! Its hard to explain - but this is how thyroid always used to be treated. Its just going back to tradiitonal methods and using a little of modern science but not at the exclusion of common sense.

[Felidae]

I am glad someone posted a question about their thyroid. My doctor called with my lab results from yesterday, and once again my thyroid is borderline underactive. She wants to run antibody tests in three months again to see if there is any change. It seems to me though that I have these kind of results every other year and the rest of the time the results are normal. Any ideas?

[georgie]

I am glad someone posted a question about their thyroid. My doctor called with my lab results from yesterday, and once again my thyroid is borderline underactive. She wants to run antibody tests in three months again to see if there is any change. It seems to me though that I have these kind of results every other year and the rest of the time the results are normal. Any ideas?

Have you had Antibodies tests before ? Any result ? Its the nature of autoimmune thyroid to fluctuate - so having one lab done every other year may not show what is really happening. You could have labs a week apart and they could vastly different if its autoimmune thyroid. So you could wait a year based on one OKish result before a dx. There are Drs that aren't happy with that and are starting to take other symptoms into account and treat the big picture. Do you have your paperwork 'cos what is borderline in one state may be Hypo in another ....

[Felidae]

Have you had Antibodies tests before ? Any result ? Its the nature of autoimmune thyroid to fluctuate - so having one lab done every other year may not show what is really happening. You could have labs a week apart and they could vastly different if its autoimmune thyroid. So you could wait a year based on one OKish result before a dx. There are Drs that aren't happy with that and are starting to take other symptoms into account and treat the big picture. Do you have your paperwork 'cos what is borderline in one state may be Hypo in another ....

I had an antibodies test before and it was normal. I don't have the paperwork. We have to book another appointment to ask for the paperwork and pay for the photocopying. I wish they would just give me every lab I have had done. So do you suggest having antibody tests run say on a Monday and then on the following Monday? I may book another appointment just to discuss this with my doctor, but I'm one of those people that is uncomfortable going to the doctor unless it is serious. On the other hand, I'm a little concerned about the results because I have some symptoms, such as brittle nails, really dry skin, mild depression and anxiety (these were way worse before I went gluten-free), no sex drive. But, I don't have any weight gain. I just haven't really feel like myself for the past few months.

[georgie]

I had an antibodies test before and it was normal

If it was me I would just get the paperwork. I wish I had a $ for everytime I have heard 'it was normal' and found that it wasn't. Get the paperwork and do your own research. Our Dr gives us all the paperwork automatically & free.

[Felidae]

If it was me I would just get the paperwork. I wish I had a $ for everytime I have heard 'it was normal' and found that it wasn't. Get the paperwork and do your own research. Our Dr gives us all the paperwork automatically & free.

I'm going to book an appointment to get the paperwork. It just seems like such a waste for the doctor to get paid again just to photocopy my results.

[Nevadan]

As georgie has said, check out the "StoptheThyroidMadness" website at Open Original Shared Link

I have recently begun having symptoms of hypothyroidism and have found the above website to be at least as beneficial for thyroid issues as this one is for gluten problems.

I'm one of those whose lab results are within spec but on the low end for free T3 and free T4 AND with a marginally low TSH. My previous doc said "no problem - don't worry about it". But with my hair thinning like crazy and my body temp running in the 95-96 range, I went and found another doc. This one agrees that labs aren't all that great and he is treating the symptoms with Armour Thyroid which I requested after doing some research including the above website.

Good luck.

George