Thyroid issues??

Hey Guys,
I had some blood drawn last week and my thyroid tests came back as:

Serum Free T4 Level 13.2pmol/L (9.0-19.0)
Serum TSH Level 0.64 mu/L (0,30-4.20)
It also said "NOTE - TSH not suppressed - Free T3 Not helpful in this case.

Ok so amongst the knowledgeable one's out there....Kirms, Bean etc what on earth is all this about...I only have a hlaf a thyroid due to it being removed in 1998 due to a large benign tumor. The doc i saw last week said that the nodules had regrown but unless they give me alot of discomfort etc he thinks they should be left alone for a while. He said I should have blood test done and my own doc would look at it. which i then did.

Does this mean I need thyroxin replacement then. I have been suffering with fluid retention lately, feel fatigued and a bit lethargic/depressed, short light periods and have joint pain in my hips which has been coming on over last few months (I put all these symptoms down to stress and possibly iron deficiency etc)

anyone know anything about all this, its going to be about 5 weeks till I get back to the doc and I would like to go in knowing a bit more on this. BTW I googled it and am now more confused than when I started lol

Yorkie x

No advice, sorry. My thyroid was removed completely almost a year ago. Damn doc is still screwing about with the meds and I just ain't right. meh. Anyway, here's a couple of links I found helpful:

www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/
www.thyroid-info.com/index.htm

Hello!
I have had thyroid issues since last year and just recently was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Disease (my body thinks thyroid is a foreign body and is killing it). So I have read several books and scoured around websites for months now. The best book and source of information I ran into was 'The Thyroid Solution' by Ridha Arem. Amazing book! What I have learned from that book is you have to have the right doctor. Are you seeing an actual endocrinologist? or just a PCP or Internal medicine doctor? If you are seeing a any other doctor besides and endocrinologist RUN! If it is an endocrinologist, make sure they are taking the right measures in treating you by educating yourself. Thyroid is not just adjusted to be in 'normal range' it is also adjusted on how your feeling and your symptoms. Believe me thyroid can throw you for a whacky loop and half the time you don't realize because it like to creep up on you.

I don't know much about lumps on the thyroid but I would pick up that book for sure! You will be shocked on what it says. Sorry I couldn't help you more.

Keep us posted!

Thanks for that info, will go to Barnes & Noble tomorrow and check it out!! Going to make an appt with an endocrinologist asap and take my blood results with me....that way I can make sure i get the right help.

Yorkie xx

Good! I am so glad to hear it!! Let me know how your first appointment went:) Good luck, I hope they take very good care of you!

No advice....just hope you get feeling better soon! I'm so sorry to hear that you are having issues

What exactly are you thinking is wrong with the level?  Your TSH appears good to me.  Of course, I have limited knowledge of this, but nothing is really jumping out at me, here.

I'm assuming you're got Hashimotos based on your nodules.  Your labs are fine but for me (a Hashi girl) I aim higher for my TSH so that I don't feel like ****  Interestingly the cut and paste below mentions low selenium as being a risk factor for developing Hashimotos.  All bariatric patients run a very real risk of severely depleted selenium.  Worth looking into I'd say.

Nic your nodes need looked at and a more comprehensive metabolic profile is needed as you may have this autoimmune disease which casts the net further for TSH agents.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis very often results in hypothyroidism with bouts of hyperthyroidism.

Physiologically, antibodies against thyroid peroxidase and/or thyroglobulin cause gradual destruction of follicles in the thyroid gland. Accordingly, the disease can be detected clinically by looking for these antibodies in the blood. It is also characterized by invasion of the thyroid tissue by leukocytes, mainly T-lymphocytes. It is associated with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Symptoms of Hashimoto's thyroiditis include Myxedematous psychosis, weight gain, depression, mania, sensitivity to heat and cold, paresthesia, fatigue, panic attacks, bradycardia, tachycardia, high cholesterol, reactive hypoglycemia, constipation, migraines, muscle weakness, cramps, memory loss, infertility and hair loss.

The thyroid gland typically becomes firm, large and lobulated in Hashimoto's thyroiditis, but any change can also be nonpalpable.^[2]. This enlargement is due to lymphocytic infiltration and fibrosis rather than tissue hypertrophy

Hashimoto's thyroiditis is often misdiagnosed as depression, cyclothymia, PMS, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and, less frequently, as an anxiety disorder. Testing for thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), Free T3, Free T4, and anti-thyroid antibodies (Tg), thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPO) tests can resolve any diagnostic difficulty.^[3]

Hashimoto's when presenting as mania is known as Prasad's syndrome after Ashok Prasad, the psychiatrist who first described it.^[4]

Risk factors: A family history of thyroid disorders is common, with the HLA-DR5 gene most strongly implicated conferring a relative risk of 3 in the UK. In addition Hashimoto's thyroiditis may be associated with CTLA-4 gene since the CTLA-4 antigen acts as an inhibitor to T-Cell activation only if the red blood cells have an RH factor of negative 3.25.

Preventable environmental factors, including high iodine intake, selenium deficiency, and pollutants such as tobacco smoke, as well as infectious diseases and certain drugs, have been implicated in the development of autoimmune thyroid disease in genetically predisposed individuals.^[5] The genes implicated vary in different ethnic groups and the incidence is increased in patients with chromosomal disorders, including Turner, Down's, and Klinefelter's syndromes usually associated with autoantibodies against thyroglobulin and thyroperoxidase.

Hey Kirms, cheers for that info.
My white cell count looked fine on my bloods, so I need to get them to test me for these antibodies?? I am going back to the doc in afew weeks. I have been feeling very low in mood, fatigued, lacking in motivation,joint pain, easily constipated and anxious. To be honest I put all this down to my bereavement, and business stress....I think I have been feeling this ****ty for such a long time I thought it was normal for me now!! So would a higher TSH alleviate some of this then?? and to achieve this I would need Thyroxine??

I read somewhere that GP's are reluctant to prescribe thyroxine when a patients labs are like mine, despite my TSH being on the absolute lowest end of normal. I guess if I dont get any joy with my GP I could always see an endocrinologist privately. The consulatnt said he wasnt concerned about the nodules and said he would remove the thyroid at a later stage when they became problematic. So you still have your Thyroid?? why havent they taken it out due to the Hashimotos??  

thanks for all the help with this stuff hon, I really appreciate it!!
 Yorkie xx

You defiantly need to up your iodine.  Likely you'll get prescribed some iodine supplements.  You probably won't need thyroxine off the bat but you'll sure as **** need a good differential diagnosis.  You need to know the disease process causing the tumor growth and if it is Hashimotos you'll need to be monitored for hypo and hyper thyroidism. You can go either way.  Essentially you immune system will constantly attack your thyroid causing fibrosis of the poor wee thing.

You've got really good advice here.  I'm also with everyone suggesting you get an endocrinologist review.