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Thyroid Disorders
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Posted 11/14/2014 6:53 AM (GMT -8)
Hi all I am new to this site. Here is my situation. For the past 2 years or so I have had a very high TPO. Last checked in September it was greater than 1000. I get my tsh checked every 6 months because of this. The last check was last week with the results of tsh less than 0.01 Free T4 was high 3.960 (Reference range 0.08 - 1.8) Free T4 high at 16.45 (reference range 2.0-4.0). I can not get in to see an endocrinologist until Feb. 20th. Is leaving my hyperthyroidism untreated going to cause any further health issues. Your input would be appreciated.

Thank,

Angel
Posted 11/14/2014 7:28 AM (GMT -8)
Hi and welcome,
You have hyperthyroidism obviously, your symptoms will gradually worsen in time.

There are three approaches to treat hyper; first an antithyroid medication like Methimazole, second RAI and third surgery, the choice depend on your situation, if you have nodules and they are growing then you will need a surgery to remove all or part of your gland.

This is why you need to ask your family doctor to order US of the neck and the thyroid gland.

Regarding waiting till Feb 20th, that is quite a long time, can your GP treat you in the mean while ?

Best,
Posted 11/14/2014 7:45 AM (GMT -8)
Thank you for your quick reply. I am surprised that my family doctor isn't treating me. I am not sure if it is because we were waiting for my thyroid function to decline because my body is attacking my thyroid. I was shocked when we discovered I was hyper although it does fit the symptoms I have been having for the past few months. I plan I calling my family doctor later today. Because I have a pre-existing heart problem I am waiting to hear from my cardiologist first. I am afraid that waiting to long with untreated hyperthyroidism will increase my chances of having further cardiac complications.
Posted 11/14/2014 8:28 AM (GMT -8)
Hyper as well as hypo affect the heart directly, so good that you follow up with a Cardiologist, if you have palpitations you might want to ask him to prescribe beta blockers .

Good luck and keep us updated ,
Posted 11/14/2014 9:39 AM (GMT -8)
Thanks, I have been on a beta blocker for years already. I was finally ready to have an ablation done but I am not sure if they hyperthyroid is going to throw that off track. I will let you know what I hear from the Dr.s
Posted 11/14/2014 12:01 PM (GMT -8)
Autoimmune thyroid disease can result in either hypo- (Hashimoto's thyroiditis) or hyper-thyroidism (Graves disease.) Right now you're on the hyper side of the equation. For some people this switches over to hypo after a short time, but for some of us the hyperthyroidism persists, and treatment is needed. When you're hyperthyroid, your body is (in broad terms) using up its life expectancy faster than it should. The heart is beating sometimes twice as fast as it should be, adding months or years of wear to the muscle. Ditto with other organs.

I would think that at a minimum, your doctor could start you on some antithyroid medication and monitor you until you can get into the endo. I wouldn't be willing to wait three months for treatment.
Posted 11/14/2014 1:08 PM (GMT -8)
Thank you for the reply. It makes sense that when you are hyperthyroid you are using up your life expectancy faster. This however is an unpleasant though because even though I am only 36 years old, my heart health because of an abnormal rhythm is estimated to be that of a 70 year old according to my cardiologist. I put a call in to both my family physician and my cardiologist. Unfortunately because it is Friday, I doubt that I will hear back from them until Monday. Honestly, I am not sure that I am getting very good care at this point. I was not even notified of my abnormal labs, and no one seems to be concerned at this point.
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