Guest guest Posted May 14, 2003 Report Share Posted May 14, 2003 Hi WW, A better way to determine how hyper you are is to test for Free T4 and Free T3, which show the amount of thyroid hormone available for use. Certainly your symptoms sound hyper. I'm surprised the dr. didn't prescribe a beta blocker to control your heart symptoms. That's important to avoid damage to the heart while your levels decrease; some beta blockers also help slow the thyroid. It's also vital, when starting on PTU, to get baseline bloodtests: a CBC (cell count) and liver function tests, as both the anti-thyroid drugs can (rarely) cause some dangerous side effects. The dr. should also give you a slip for future lab work. You need to get another CBC done anytime you get a sore throat or fever, especially at the start of treatment, again to rule out the dangerous side effects. As far as the antibodies, according to Elaine's book (as I understand it so far), it looks like the doctor tested for autoimmune thyroid disease generally, not the antibodies specific to Graves'. That's all my endocrinologist did: I believe it's a cheaper test. She asserted that, along with the hyper symptoms, these antibodies established that I have Graves'. I believe the specific tests are for stimulating TRAb (or TSI) and, in the case of eye problems, either total TRAb or separate measurements of blocking TRAb and stimulating TRAb. In any case, you should start feeling better as the PTU takes effect. Best wishes, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.