Negative thyroid antibody test/swollen thyroid and glands

[jazzbophailey]

Hi I'm a 27 year old female who presented with hyperthyroid symptoms 4 months ago. Hair loss, rapid heart rate, palpitations, low TSH .22 the lowest and .5 the highest. I saw and endocrinologist 1 month ago and at the time he noticed a swollen lymph node and ordered more tests. He thought I had Hasimotos. Labs came back and all the thyroid atb were normal. In the last 3 weeks My  thyroid and lymph gland have gone nuts!!! Both side of my neck have large palpibale/rubbery bumps and hard swollen lymph nodes all over my neck "and one that I can feel on R side of abdomen below rib cage." The lumps and nodes dont hurt, but the rest of my neck feel like its on fire most of the time. From my ears to the base of my neck. I cant exersise or do anything extrenues or my pulse goes up to like 150 and I have shortness of breath. I feel like crap!! I have taken extra strength NSAID naproxin ,didnt seem to help. I also tried a round of penicillin just in case it was and infection. My next apt. with my Endo is in 6 days and I would like advise on what labs and imaging I should try and convince him to order (hes a nice Doc). im skeptical that this is just Thyroiditis or lymphitis. ( symptoms X4 months and getting worse.) Is there a chance that i could have graves or hashimotos with negative ATB test? what are the chances of having lymp cancer? I know this sounds a little dramatic but all I can think about all day long is how bad I feel and how painfull my neck is. Any input would be wonderful THANK SO MUCH!!!
any  input would be grate

[stella5349]

Yes - an uptake scan - and an MRI - or US scan should be odered here regardless if the labs were done. - BUT getting the tests Tamara detailed out is needed too.

Thyroid swelling like in thyroiditis is one lump in most cases in the base of the middle of the neck. - How I am reading it as you say you have "lumps" which don't coneect with it just being thyroid swelling.

Without imaging its just guess work - as for the scans.

[McMillanNelson]

Hi jazzbophailey,  Your situation sounds a lot like mine. My TSH was .28 in November and too had (and still have but to a lesser degree) Pain / fire on my left side neck. As Tamara says, You need a real endo and you need to get an ultrasound.  My Ultrasound showed that I have "Toxic Multinodular Goiter"  "Goiter" is a term used loosely and basically means any enlargement of the thyroid gland or parts thereof, "Multinodular" means I have several (six,  three on each side) cysts, or "nodules" in my thyroid, one about the size of a marble now, and the rest much smaller. I have felt like crap for about 6 years, and many of my symptoms are more "Hypo" than "Hyper"  the "Toxic" part means that these "Nodules" function independent of the thyroid and produce their own extra thyroid hormone and dumps it into the blood stream.

For now you might want to avoid seafood, too much iodized salt, try and stay away from processed foods and fast foods. A multi vitamin is a good idea if you are not taking one.  When you get more lab work done be sure to ask that they check your Iodine level. I have been reading a book "Iodine Why You Need It , Why You Can't Live Without It , by David Brownstein, MD. IN the book Dr. Brownsrein points to several studies that sho that People with Thyroid diseases like Hashimotos are Iodine deficient. People who were otherwise healthy like me, over time develop nodules in the Thyroid. I am getting Labs again next month and will see where my Iodine level is at but I am sure it has changed now.  I chose to take medication while i study this problem. My doctor suggested a radiation treatment , RAI (radioactive Ablation, or surgery and suggested that any medication would only work in the short term. (I refused any invasive treatment at this time)  In the mean time I am on Methimazole and continue to study Holistic and natural treatments for Thyroid disease. My antibodies are fairly "normal"  though THYROGLOBULIN is slightly above normal at 36.5. I suspect that my underlying problem my be Hashimotos but I am still reading and learning.

I too was very low in Vitamin D and Calcium. If you post your lab work (I put mine in my Journal) others on the list that know more would be happy to help you and suggest things.  Like Tamara said the next step for you really is to get an Ultrasound and see what is going on in your thyroid.

Good Luck!

McMillan

[TamraW]

What antibody tests did he give you? The TPOab and TGab? There are two for Hashi. You only need to have one positive to have Hashi. Also, a small number of Hashis will not have positive antibodies. Also, what about the TSI for Graves? Sounds to me like you only had one antibody test. Tsk tsk on the doctor.

What are your free T4 and T3 levels? That's more important than measuring TSH when trying to determine thyroid levels.

What about a thyroid ultrasound?

I know you say he's nice, but nice doesn't cure sickness. You need a doc who knows how to diagnose you. My last endo was nice, but it took her four months to diagnose me when she should have run a complete set of blood tests the first time and she should have figured out by the ultrasound that I had thyroid disease.

Below is a site with recommended endos. Choose one who treats mostly thyroid, not diabetes.

http://www.thyroid-info.com/topdrs/

You're not dramatic. You're sick, and you should be getting proper care. My lymph nodes are swollen from time to time. I have a swollen one in my armpit. I have Hashimoto's. I had a swollen lump under my right ribcage. It turned out to be a big, tense knot, caused muscle cramping, which was caused by my low Vitamin D  (common in thyroid patients). Anyway, I went to a Gastro for the knot. I thought something was sticking out from my insides. They stuck a muscle relaxing shot in my skin and that did the trick. Also, keeping up with my D levels has helped.  

Selenium once a day helps with thyroid swelling.
:) Tamra