tsh level 4.390

My doctor says a tsh level of 4.390 is normal.  However I feel terrible.  I have many of the symptoms of Hypothyroidism.  It also runs in my family.  I do not have health insurance.  Any suggestions?

[dpleiman]

Did your doctor do a T3 and T4 as well as a TSH? a TSH alone will not give the entire answer, I have hashimotos "Hypothyroidism" and when my TSH is 4.3 I have a lot of symptoms.

I would contact your doctor and ask more questions:
Ask if they did the T3 and T4 and what those levels were

If they DID do those AND they are within normal range too then i would retest in 3 months to see if your levels are still the same.

Hope you get some answers soon.

[6hashi]

in the US the reference range of the tsh is 0.3-3   !

[magpieannie]

Your TSH is too high!

[idaho_ty]

You should check out this site. http://thyroid.about.com/od/gettestedanddiagnosed/a/normaltshlevel.htm

This comes from the site:
"This understanding led to the recommendation, more than six years ago in January 2003, by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, that doctors "consider treatment for patients who test outside the boundaries of a narrower margin based on a target TSH level of 0.3 to 3.0." (Read AACE statement now).

This was backed up by research done by the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry, part of the Academy of the American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC), and presented in their Laboratory Medicine Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Monitoring of Thyroid Disease. Read the Guidelines now). Late in 2002, this group reported that: "In the future, it is likely that the upper limit of the serum TSH euthyroid reference range will be reduced to 2.5 mIU/L because more than 95% of rigorously screened normal euthyroid volunteers have serum TSH values between 0.4 and 2.5 mIU/L."

More recently, researchers have looked at an important question: If the normal TSH range were narrowed, as has been recommended by AACE and the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry, what are the implications?

One study found that using a TSH upper normal range of 5.0, approximately 5% of the population is hypothyroid.

However, if the upper portion of the normal range was lowered to 3.0, approximately 20% of the population would be hypothyroid.

Implications for Patients

It's now more than six years since the experts have established that this new, narrower TSH normal range of 0.3 to 3.0 is a more accurate one, and recommended that it become the standard of practice. Yet, the dithering continues. Some doctors use the new range for diagnosis and therapeutic management -- others refuse to consider anything unless it's marked "High" or "Low" on laboratory reports."

My TSH level last week was 4.410. In my doctor's office, there is an MD and a Naturopathic Physician. They both agree that TSH levels should not be above 2.5. I was treated for hypothyroid disorder and all my symptoms disappeared, including my low DHEA level. Maybe you should find a doctor that has more endocrinolgy experience. Anyone who said that 4.390 is normal isn't on top of recent studies. Your post is nearly 7 months old now so I hope you have figured it out. Good luck!