Should my daughter be tested??

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-28-2004
Should my daughter be tested??
5
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 2:14pm
I've just been diagnosed with Hashi's, my mother has Graves, my nephew is 19 and has Hashi's and my mother in law is Hypo. I assume that at some point we'll have to start checking my 9 yo daughter's thyroid levels to make sure she's ok, but so far she has no symptoms. She has congenital heart defects and had to have OH surgery a couple of years ago, so I don't want to put her through any procedures if I can help it, she's been through so much already. I'm thinking that if she doesn't show any symptoms, that maybe we should test her when she's in high school. What do you think? What about my 15 yo son?

Cathy

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-27-2003
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 3:36pm

I am new to this board and the whole world of thyroid issues but here's my $.02 :-)


I wouldn't worry about testing if they don't have symptoms.

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-28-2004
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 3:46pm
I read somewhere that if you suspect that your child has a thyroid problem, that you should watch for height or weight problems on the growth charts (you can get good ones from the CDC.gov website) and if, as time goes on, they cross 2 of the major percentile lines (not getting progressively taller, or getting too heavy or too thin for their height) that you should look into running thyroid tests. So I guess I'll just watch her growth and see how it goes. She's a little thin and a little tall for her age, but within normal ranges and growing steadily.

Cathy in Tx

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-09-2001
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 4:23pm
Hi - Yes, you should have them both tested just to be certain. And it will establish a good basleine for the future if thry are ok now. It's just a blood test so it's not like they have to go through anything traumatic. And their pediatrician can do or at least see them first and have you go to a lab for the tests. I'm hypo, my mom was hypo, my grandfater on my dad's side was hypo and two of my three children are. One was diagnosed when she was 15 but most likely had it since she was about 11 and my son was diagnosed at 13, when I noticed he had some similiar cahracteristtics to his hypo sister. So my answer would be "yes". Cathy :)
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-09-2001
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 4:26pm
Hi Emily - It's probably not a good idea to wait that long to have children tested - especially with Cathy's family history, there's a strong chance that they might have some thyroid condition. Cathy :)
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-09-2001
Wed, 07-14-2004 - 5:08pm
Hi again Cathy - I just wanted to say that it was the growth issue that was a major symptom for my daughter but we didn't catch it at the time because we had no idea there was such a thing as hypothyroidism! But it affects all areas of their growth, not just their height. Although that's a critical thing, too. Once you're catching up on the height, it's just extremely stressful. My son has been undermedicated for the last few months and I still have to wonder if he's at his normal height or not. And you have all the issues that relate to puberty to think about - because those can be delayed, as well. So it's something to consider in making your decision. Cathy :)