Thyroid Update — May 2011

I finally had the next appointment with my endocrinologist.  I was supposed to have it in March, but I put it off until hubby’s new job provided health insurance on May 1st, then I had to postpone it again a couple week’s ago because I was too sick to go get blood work in time for the appointment.  Sheesh!

I don’t have my lab results this time…for some reason they didn’t send them to me.  I’ll have to get a copy from the doctor’s office the next time I go.  He did mention that my levels looked good.  My liver profile looked a little high, but he wasn’t concerned based on my age.

I also had an ultrasound and the two nodules are shrinking a little bit!  That’s the first time they’ve changed at all!

Basically, he ended up leaving all my medication the same and told me to come back in September.  Thank goodness the lab sheet will only require 2-3 vials of blood instead of the 9 vials they took this last time!  And no fasting!  Yay!

Thyroid Results–November 2010

I finally had a chance to compare the lab report from my November blood work and endocrinologist appointment.  Everything looked good, though he did skip a lot of areas he normally tested.

All within normal levels:

• TSH: 0.42 mIU/L — down from August test results of 1.90 mIU/L — normal is 0.40-4.50 mIU/L
• T4 Free: 1.4 ng/dL — up from August test results of 1.2 ng/dL — normal is 0.8-1.8 ng/dL
• T3 Total: 160 ng/dL — down from August test results of 173 ng/dL — normal is 76-181 ng/dL

Everything was in range this time, but I was surprised to see he didn’t test my T4 Total this time since it’s usually out of range.  In August it was out of range by 2.2 mcg/dL.

I told him about some circulation issues and that I wasn’t sure when they started so I wanted to eliminate the Inderol as a cause, though I’m pretty sure it’s due to my knee and hip issues.  He decided to wean me off of it to see if that helps.  If it doesn’t, then I’ll know it’s not the Inderol.  So now I’m taking 20 mg in the morning, and 10 mg in the afternoon and evening.  We’ll see what happens!

He also wanted me to lower my Tapazole dose from 5 mg every other day to 5 mg three days a week.  My vitamin D3 has been increased from 2,000 units to up to 5,000 units per day, though I’m taking 4,000 units per day because they are 2,000 unit pills.  Other than that everything else is the same.

New Thyroid Results

It’s blood work and endocrinologist appointment time again!  This time for some reason the doctor didn’t request extensive lab work like he usually does.  Only three vials this time instead of his normal six to eight.  That’s fine by me!

All within normal levels:

• TSH: 1.90 mIU/L — up from February’s results of 0.84 mIU/L — normal is 0.40-4.50 mIU/L
• T4 Free: 1.2 ng/dL — up from February’s results of 1.0 ng/dL — normal is 0.8-1.8 ng/dL
• T3 Free: 279 pg/dL — down from February’s results of 330 pg/dL — normal is 230-420 pg/dL
• T3 Total: 173 ng/dL — up from February’s results of 167 ng/dL — normal is 76-181 ng/dL
• Thyroglobulin Antibodies: <20 IU/mL — same as February’s results — normal is <20 IU/mL
• Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies: <10 IU/mL — same as February’s results — normal is <35 IU/mL
• TSI: 105% — up from February’s results of 96% — normal is <=125 % baseline

Out of range results:

• T4 Total: 14.7 mcg/dL — up from February’s results of 13.7 mcg/dL — normal is 4.5-12.5 mcg/dL

My endocrinologist wasn’t concerned with the out of range result because it’s pretty normal for me and is actually elevated more due to the birth control pills I take to regulate my cycle.  So it’s expected to be out of range.  I talked to my gynecologist about getting an endometrial ablation.  He said he could do it, but that it doesn’t mean it will stop my cycles completely, which means I could still be on birth control pills anyway.  *sigh*  I’m still considering doing it anyway, but I’d like a little more time to think about it.  So it seems my endocrinologist will just have to deal with the slightly elevated T4 Total results for now!

In the meanwhile, I’ve been told to continue with my vitamins and the Inderol 3 times a day.  He also wants me to reduce my Tapazole from 5mg a day to 5 mg every other day.  My next appointment and blood work will be in November.  He’s requested more tests on the lab sheet this time so we’ll see how many vials that will be then!

Partial Lab Results

Yesterday I received a copy of the partial lab results from my blood work from Wednesday.

It’s good and bad, but not horribly bad so far.

Those areas with normal levels include:

HDL Cholesterol, Triglycerides, Cholesterol/HDLC Ratio, Glucose, Nitrogen, Creatinine, Sodium, Potassium, Chloride, Carbon Dioxide, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphate, Uric Acid, Hepatic Function Panel, CBC (White Blood Cell Count, Red Blood Cell Count, etc.).

See why I don’t need to see my primary doctor unless there is something wrong?  My endocrinologist runs too many enough tests that I’d know if something is wrong before I even started feeling bad!

The areas that are out of range include:

• Total Cholesterol — normal range between 125-200 mg/dL.  Mine is 206, which is high, but not I’m going to drop dead of a heart attack tomorrow enormously high!
• LDL Cholesterol — normal range should be <130 mg/dL.  Mine is 136.  Again high, but not extreme.
• T4 (Thyroxine), Total — normal range is between 4.5-12.5 mcg/dL.  Mine is currently at 13.7, which is better than the last time.

The last time I had my cholesterol checked it was November 2008.  At that time it was a lot higher with my Total Cholesterol at 254 and my LDL at 177!

OUCH!

So it has gone down significantly!  I’m very pleased about that, especially since I haven’t been taking any medication and I’ve been basically eating the same, which has been rather good overall.

My previous T4 (Thyroxine), Total levels were (these have to do with my thyroid–generally the higher they are, the more hyper my thyroid is, though I’ll need the other test ranges, too):

• November 2009 = 14.5
• July 2009 = 13.2
• November 2008 = 11.7 (in range)

I’m still missing from this lab report:

• TSH, 3rd Generation
• T4, Free
• T3, Free
• T3, Total
• Thyroglobulin Antibodies
• Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies
• TSI (Thyroid Stimulating Immunoglobulin)
• Vitamin B12
• Folate

All except the last two have to do with my thyroid.  I’ll do a post another time with explanations regarding Graves’ Disease and the lab tests required to keep track of it.

Is anyone else dealing with a thyroid issue?

Do you keep track of your lab results?

They Drained My Blood!

I had to get blood work again today and as usual it’s not very pleasant, but not too bad either.  I’ve been having it done every 3-6 months due to an auto-immune disease I developed during my last pregnancy in 2001.

I have a hyperthyroid disease called Graves Disease.

Luckily for me, it can be controlled by medication.  Unluckily for me, it requires constant supervision by an endocrinologist, which includes appointments and blood work every 3-6 months plus ultrasounds about every year to check the nodules on my thyroid (I have two).

I have to say that I have an excellent endocrinologist, which not everyone can say.  But he is very protective over his patients to the point of going overboard with the lab sheet!

This is what is being done with the blood I had drawn today:

1. Basic Metabolic Panel
2. Liver Profile
3. Lipid Profile
4. Phosphorus
5. Magnesium
6. Uric Acid
7. CBC w/Auto Diff
8. Albumin/Creatinine Ratio
9. T4
10. Free T4
11. T3 Total
12. Free T3
13. TSH
14. Vitamin B-12
15. RBC Folate
16. TPO-Anti.
17. Thyroglobulin-Anti.
18. Thyroid Stim. Imm./TSI
19. Intact PTH

Yes, that’s right 19 tests!  That was 6 vials of blood taken (2 small and 4 large) and a urine sample!

You’d think I would be ready for a burger when I was finished!