Low thyroid and Testosterone

[Lost_punk]

Greeting all.   i'm a 29yr old male.   I recently went to the doc cuz i'm not feeling right.   she did a blood draw for testosterone and thyroid.   I had a testosterone test about 3 months ago.   that came back low(260) but it was done late in the afternoon.   doc told me to go on a herbal over the counter cream.  used it for several weeks and stopped.   felt the same.   now new doc new blood draw.   testosterone at 269 and TSH at 0.948.   but the endo's office is booked and can't get me in till feb 3rd.  

I have been experiencing erectile function issues fro about 4-5 years and was put on levitra about 2 years ago.   works great but doc didn't do any research into why.   i was 26 at the time i first looked into it.   My dad also has hypothyroidism and he said it was from drug use.   just kinda wondering if this is something that he could of passed to be via genetics, and could my hypo thryoid be causing my low testosterone and my ED problems?   any help would be great

[Lost_punk]

my wife is currently hypo.   was hyper.   she does her quarterly checks on her blood not on her symptoms.   i'm sure it has some to do with her symptoms but i'm not 100% sure.   This is pretty much the way i would want to be done as well.  

I had my vit D checked in september and it was normal.   don't remember what it was anymore but it was in the middle of the "normal" range.

[gimel]

From what I've read in a number of studies, hypothyroidism could definitely be a factor for both.  You really need to get some further testing done.  TSH is a pituitary hormone that is affected by so many variables that it really does not correlate with the biologically active thyroid hormones, Free T3 and Free T4, much less with hypo symptoms.  Most doctors, who diagnose and medicate based on TSH would look at your TSH test result, and unless you worked real hard to convince them that you had hypothyroid symptoms, they would probably do no more testing and pronounce you as "normal" regarding thyroid.  In view of your symptoms and family history, your TSH level may be due to issues with the pituitary, rather than a good indicator of being "normal'.

I would suggest that since Hashimoto's Thyroiditis is the most common cause for hypothyroidism, and it is somewhat hereditary, you should ask to be tested for the thyroid antibodies, Thyroid Peroxicase antibodies, and also Thyroglobulin antibodies.  The two tests are TPO ab and TG ab.

In addition, you should always request to be tested for Free T3 and Free T4 (not the same as Total T3 and Total T4) whenever you go in to the doctor's office.  Free T3 is the most important because it largely regulates metabolism and many other body functions.  Scientific studies have shown that Free T3 correlated best with hypo symptoms, while Free T4 and TSH did not correlate.  If the doctor resists testing for FT3 and FT4, then you should insist on it and don't take no for an answer.  

Just because you are going to an Endo does not mean that he will be a good thyroid doctor.  A good thyroid doctor will treat a hypo patient clinically by testing and adjusting Free T3 and Free T4 as necessary to relieve symptoms, without being constrained by resultant TSH levels.  Symptom relief should be all important to you, not just test results.  Be aware that symptom relief for many members here, myself included, required that Free T3 was adjusted into the upper part of its range and Free T4 adjusted to around the midpoint of its range.

If you want to get some good insight into clinical treatment, this is a link to a letter written by a good thyroid doctor for patients that he sometimes consults with from a distance.  The letter is sent to the PCP of the patient to help guide treatment.

http://hormonerestoration.com/files/ThyroidPMD.pdf

At some point I also suggest that you get tested for Vitamin D, B12, zinc, selenium and RBC magnesium.  

When any test results are available, it is always a good idea to get a copy and write on there how you were feeling at the time and what meds/supplements you were taking.  These then become valuable for future reference.  If you will post results and reference ranges shown on the lab report, then members will be glad to help interpret and advise further.