higher T4 with higher TSH

[shalabh]

Dear Sir
My wife having thyroid problem after consuming  Eltroxin-50 the latest report is
T3- 98 ng/dl                  (60 -200)
T4- 13.5 Microgram/dl   (4.5 -12)
TSH- 4.87                    (0.3 -5.5)

Please suggest the remedy

[des900]

in india unfortunately no t3 medicine available and doctors have no idea regarding it. me too searching for them but no use.

mine result is also like yours but nothing can be done regarding t3.

here is a latest result of mine

TSH = 5.55 (.5 - 5)

T4 = 7.7 (4.5 - 9)
Free T4 = 18.3 (9 - 20)

T3 = 82 (59 - 159)
Free T3 = 5.2 (3.5 - 8)

taking eltroxin 25

i experienced hyperthyroid symptoms with this but doctors simply disregarded it and gave me beta blocker to calm tachycardia, insomnia etc but i simply reduced the dose to 12.5 mcg and all hyper symptoms went away without the need of beta blocker.

what i am saying is find doctor who is know for treating thyroid problems. most doctors in india just look the tsh value also not look for optimum range for other results (free t4, free t3) and that kind of approach can result in new health problems like osteoporosis, heart problems etc.

so change doctor and with his supervision change dosage and also tell him about your concerns regarding t3 values (its low in the reference range).

[des900]

ask your doctor to reduce dosage to 25 mcg (eltroxin 25).

reason is t4 is over. ideally the t4 value should be in middle in the referance range. so around 8.

ignore the tsh, the reason is tsh mainly dependent on t3 which is low in the lab test. also it can affect due to other problems anyway ignoring tsh is best especially in such condition. if went to a doctor in india he will again up the dose as he see tsh still not in range but that's stupidity (me have experienced this with many doctors that's why said). so if he not willing to reduce eltroxin to eltroxin 25 then change doctor. reducing t4 is the correct way. find a doctor who is good in treating thyroid problems.

also taking levo at night time before sleep is better than taking at morning. taking at bedtime is found to increase t3 a little bit so useful.

[Barb135]

While your wife's T4 is above range, her T3 is only at 27% of its range, indicating that she's not converting the T4 to T3 adequately, however, the tests appear to be for Total T3 and Total T4, not the active hormones, Free T3 and Free T4.

Rule of thumb (where most of us feel best) if for Free T4 to be about mid range and for Free T3 to be in the upper half to upper third of its range.  

You can try to get your wife's doctor to add a source of T3, if available in your country, or you can try adding selenium, which has been shown to help in the conversion of Free T4 to the active Free T3.

It would also be good to have your wife's vitamin D and ferritin tested, since both are necessary for the proper metabolism of thyroid hormones.  Ferritin is the iron storage hormone and iron is also necessary for proper conversion of FT4 to the usable FT3.