Yep, you're hyper. You may have to wait a couple days for the radiologist to get the report of the scan to your doc. That'll describe the texture and uptake pattern of the rai. Sometimes that can tell a lot too.
I'll wait til you have paper copies of the results of you tsh and t's in your hands. Exact numbers are pretty important when you're dealing with the thyroid. Unless you have obvious protrusion of the eyes, you'll need a TSI test too in order to confirm graves disease. The type of thyroid disease you have is important too.
You'll most likely be put on tapazole. You'll need your beta blockers for a while too cause it takes over a month for the anti-thyroid meds to stabalize. You need blood drawn 4-6 weeks from the time you start taking them. TSH, FT4 and FT3 to see how things are going and whether the meds need to be adjusted up or down. Anti-thyroid meds can take up to 2 years to produce remission if remission is going to be achieved but if you're doing ok on them, there is nothing says you can't keep taking them as long as you need to. 6 mos is an arbitrary timeline and I think it's mainly cause docs just don't like to mess with hypers. You're going to find that we hypers are pariahs in the medical world. It's one of the reasons we have to educate ourselves so thoroughly. Most docs either don't know the first thing about it or are terrified of it. But that doesn't really matter as long as we know about it and aren't afraid of it.
Okay, based on the findings in my scan, it looks as if I don't have graves disease. I don't have an enlarged thyroid and no hot or cold nodules. The doc has no idea why I'm hyper. He thinks it's just some autoimmune disorder that can hopefully be controlled and possibly fixed with meds.
Because my heartrate is still at 100 or higher, he's going to up my propanolol from 80 milligrams to 120 milligrams and put me on Tapazole. Not sure yet of the Tapazole dosage but I'll find out tomorrow. He wants to see me back in two weeks.
He asked me today if we had checked my thyroglobulin antibodies and I was like "how am I supposed to know?". He only told me my TSH, T3 and T4 numbers. Oh, and I found out my TSH was less than .004. My T3 and T4 numbers exactly were 12.2 and 4.64.
Thanks access, you knew I'd be on Tapazole. I guess this means there's hope!
Hello! Thought I'd break in on this topic too...If the doc said it's auto immune it IS Graves, that's what Graves disease is...an auto immune disease! Now as far as the labs was your free t-3, 4 point something? Was your freet-4 out of range? Was it total 4 or free? If it was total and the number was 12, that is in range. It might be t-3 toxicosis, with only the free t-3 being out of range. If you're having heart issues it's usually the free t-3 that is way high, that rules the metabolism, how fast things go.. weight loss, nervousness,rapid heart, tremors, insomnia, frequent bm's go along with this. I am on Tapazole for over a year now and am doing pretty well, although dosage has been adjusted in the last 7 months or so, I went hypo for awhile, then a little hyper again, but still felt okay.I feel better a little hypo anyway, hate the fast heart and nervousness. Just read Katkat's posts, you won't want to rush into RAI, believe me!! You can't even be around people for awhile, especially little ones or share the same toilet, and there's some literature out there about women who have RAI, their husbands go hypo too within 10 years. I guess you pass the radiation on to him?? That sounds not like something I want to have done.
Give the meds a chance you can always change endos if yours is being pushy. Find one a little more liberal.
Here is what happened to me. Also, FYI, I have one child, an 18mth old.
In Sept. 2007, my sister said, "Frances, you're shaking. Why are you shaking so much?" And I said, "What are you talking about?" because I didn't even know it. We had been hiking, and because I don't exercise very much, I was thinking I was shaking because of that.
Then, over Christmas, I had a 48 hr stomach bug. A few weeks later I had a horrible sinus infection. Then, about three weeks ago, I had another sinus infection and I started having the rapid heartbeat and crazy night sweats. I had never been so sick in my entire life. So, I went to the doc three weeks ago for my sickness and also wanted to ask about my weight loss and my heart was going fast. And, I haven't had a real period in three or four months.
All this time too, since last year, I thought I had been losing weight, and of course, I was thinking, wow this has been too easy. My family has great metabolism and I so I just never thought anything was really going on. Then, my husband thought I had been losing too much weight.
At the doc, my heart rate was 160. He took blood work and sent me to the pharmicist to get zithromax for my antibiotic and 80 milligrams of propranolol. TSH was less than .004. T3 was 12.2 and T4 was 4.64. I'm not sure what you mean by "free" or "total." Sorry!
I've been on propranolol for about three weeks and heart rate is down to 100+. On Tues, I went to take my iodine pill and after five hours, my uptake was 23 and then 24 hrs later was 45.
Results of the scan showed I don't have an enlarged thyroid and he used the word homogeneous. I have no hot or cold nodules.
Doc just updated me today to 120 milligrams of propranolol and 4 milligrams 3x a day of Tapazole. I know I'll need to watch my heart rate with this combination.
By the way, the doc I'm referring to is a PA and I have not yet talked with an endo. I know that's bad, but I will go soon.
Doc made me go back today for more blood work to test thyroglobulin antibodies. Don't know anything yet.
And as you may have seen before after one week of hyperthyroid, doc was scheduling for my uptake and ablation this week. Wow, way rushed and I said put me on meds after all of the great information here!
Hi Again! Are you sure you don't have the numbers for t 3 and 4 mixed up? Do you have a copy of the labs? They don't sound right. the range for total t-4 is
(4.5-12.0) the free t-4 is(0.8-1.9) you say yours is 4.something, I forgot. The total t-3 range is(1.10-2.00) the free t-3 is (2.3-4.2) you said yours is 12? I'm confused now.Yours is that FAR out of range? As far as the 4 milligrams of Tapazole, they come in 5,10,20 mg doses. There's not a 4 mg pill as far as I know. Do you live out of the US? Sorry for all the questions, just trying to understand.
I would not doubt that I got things mixed up. I was 4x whatever numbers for some type of T3 and T4. Based on the ranges you provided, it looks like mione were for free T3 and free T4. The doc only gave me that set of numbers and gave me my TSH level.
And yes, when I looked at my prescription this morning, it was 5 milligrams of Tapazole. Can't you tell I'm new?
