Doctors only, please.?
Recently, I did blood work that showed my TSH levels high at 7.63, but my thyroid levels (T3&T4) were normal except FT4, which was 1.11. What does this mean?
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- Grad give a good answer about tsh,I no need to mention more except it is the hormone produce by the brain ;pituitary gland through the fid back mechanism to control thyroid work.T4(thyroxin} T3(trithyroxin) are the thyroid hormones;T4:T3 are 20:1 but both are bound to protein and only when free then has function.FT4 is the free T4.It represent the real working hormone.your tsh is high and your FT4 1.11 is normal(adult 0.8-2.7),and T4 and T3 are normal., hypothyroidism is under question.
- Hypothyroid disease is a frequently missed diagnosis. The symptoms associated with full blown disease may not be present or be overlooked when the disease is in its early stages. Laboratory testing misses many people with the disease. There are many different causes of hypothyroid disease. Typical tests screen for only the most common causes.
The most common test to run to screen for thyroid problems is the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) test. This hormone is made in the brain and regulates how much thyroid hormone the thyroid gland makes and releases into the body. If the thyroid gland is under active and not producing enough thyroid hormone the brain tells it to pick up the pace and it does so by increasing how much TSH it secretes into the blood. Thus an elevated TSH is an indication that someone is hypothyroid.
The guidelines for interpreting TSH values have changed over the years. There is a daily fluctuation in TSH: nighttime values may be 200% higher than mid-afternoon values. The problem is further compounded because it has been difficult to find a group of healthy subjects with which to set the “normal range” for the test. Individuals with undiagnosed thyroid disease have been included in the groups of people tested to set these “normal ranges.”
In the last 20 years the accepted normal upper limit for TSH has officially dropped from around 20 to about 4.5. Even this limit is too high. A TSH of over 2.0 puts someone at increased risk of developing overt disease.
Most of our local labs still classify a TSH under 5.5 as normal. Current medical science does not support this. In 2002 the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists suggested that the upper range for a normal TSH be lowered to 3.0. According to the National Association of Clinical Biochemistry, “ In the future, it is likely that the upper limit of the serum TSH euthyroid reference range will be reduced to 2.5 because >95% of rigorously screened normal euthyroid volunteers have serum TSH values between 0.4 and 2.5 ”
- I am not a doctor but a patient that had thyroid cancer and has seen 4 endocrinologist (thyroid and metabolism specialists).
I high TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) usually indicated hypothyroidism. It is a hormone released by the pituitary to tell the thyroid to produce more hormones. Your body thinks you still need more thyroid hormones.
FT4 is your free T4, that is the amount available to use for the body. I don't know if 1.11 is low or high, but unless you have a pituitary problem, I assume it would be low.