New to thyroid issues – lab tests/
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New to thyroid issues – lab tests/
| Tue, 08-17-2004 - 10:43am |
Can you please help me on this? I am just coming to the realization that I might have a thyroid problem. For YEARS I have been constantly tired, sleepy (even after sleeping 9 hours), excessively cold, brittle nails, etc., and all the doctors have ever said was that I was depressed. Well, 3 doctors and 5 anti-depressants later, I have decided to make an appt. with an endocrinologist. I got my results back from a blood test I took a few weeks ago with my PCP (I don’t visit the endo. for another 3 weeks). Can anyone tell me how this looks? (I don’t know if birth control pills affect these tests, but because of endometriosis, I have been on them for 4 years now) Oh, the normal ranges are in the right column.
T3, Total 163
T-3 Uptake 24 22-35%
T-4, Total 9.9
Free T4 Index 2.4
TSH 2.33 MIU/L
Also, my carbon dioxide level was low – 18 and the normal range is 21-33. Any advice?
Alicia

Eric
That said, your total T4 is on the high side, so that means that your body is producing enough thyroid hormone but perhaps something is interfering with your thyroid's use of it. I can't get to Eric's post right now but perhaps the birth control pills are interfering just enough for you to feel so badly. Those are certainly hypo syptoms but then, there are other things that can mimic hypothyroidism. Have you had your adrenals checked? And your iron levels? There is also something called Wilson's syndrome that presents symptoms similiar to hypothyroidism but with a normal tsh level. Check out this link: http://www.wilsonssyndrome.com/WilsonsThyroidSyndrome.htm
I hope some of this info helps. Maybe it will give you some ideas of what to discuss with your doctor. It will be important for you to stress your syptoms regardless of the "normal" tsh level. You want to get to the underlying cause, not just treat a number on a blood test. Cathy :)