Blood test results - what does it mean?

I was borderline...my TSH was 6....I felt wretched...apparently everything else was fine. Id had deppression on and off for years..

My symotoms were,major fatigue,not just tired but terrible lethargy,aching,tearful,restlessness.

My Gp prescribed me levythyroxine...a féw months ago...at first i was up and down,but now,8 weeks later i can see such a difference,

My last blood tests showed my THS as 4...

Hope this helps.

My name is Shelly and I am a nurse in the USA.  I have Hashimoto's thyroid disease since 1987.

I can help you understand the lab work.

TSH should be 0.45 to 4.50 and whn it is on the low end of the scale it menas Hyper or TOO MUCH and high end means HYPO or TOO LITTLE.

TPOA is a special blood test for autoimmune antibodies.  It can diagnose Hashimoto's which is what I have.  Normal TPOA is 0 -9 and should be close to ZERO!  If it is above the number 10 or higher it needs to be investigated as many of us have it.

Antibodies are normally "friendly" but due to certain conditions they turn against our bodies and attack the thyroid and it takes years to damage the gland and render it useless.

Some reasons are, family history of it, Epstein-Barr virus, bad lifestyle drugs or stress or abuse. Other medical problem like Diabetes and Lupus and certain cancers.

Mean cell Hemoglobin should be 27 -33.  I am using USA Values since you did not give us a reference range or scale.  This is okay.

Neutrophils count is part of the White blood cells count (it is one component of it),  and many of us with thyroid disease are low in this.  Mine are 7.6. This means immune system problems and goes along with autoimmune problems.

Serum Bilirubin has to do with your liver function.  In some people they can get yellow in color and they call it Jaundice.   You should be 0.1 to 2.0 and you are high there.  Do you drink alcohol?  It can also be a problem of a fatty liver.

Hypothyroid symptoms are, feeling cold and tired all the time, hair loss, weight gain, bruising, brittle nails and dry skin, low heart rate, low body temp, constipation, feeling depressed, headaches and muscle aches.

So ask the doctor for a T3 & T4 and FT3 tests. Also TGab antibodies level, and blood cortisol level.

It sounds like you have the early phases of autoimmune disease and you will need thyroid medication.

Any questions just ask,

Shelly

Additionally your TPO antibodies are raised which indicates your immune system is attacking your thyroid.

The research papers I've read say that people with 'borderline' hypothyroidism usually go on to develop full hypothyroidism where the T4 and T3 results are too low.

So my view, based on the results you've supplied, is that you have hypothyroidism.

This though is immaterial, the main question to be answered is how to get you feeling better. The UK's NICE guidelines allow for the prescribing of a low dose (25mcg) of thyroxine in borderline hypothyroidism cases. So I would suggest:

Look up hypothyroid symptoms, print them off, mark off the ones you have, then take the list and show it to your doctor and say you understand the NICE guidelines allow for a therapeutic dose of 25mcg thyroxine in borderline hypothyroidism and you would like to try it.

If your doctor won't prescribe it ask why not and argue that you feel rough and you wondered whether it would help.

If your doctor still won't prescribe it. Try another doctor at the same surgery.

Keep trying different doctors until you get a doctor who will prescribe thyroxine. By the way, don't be alarmed by the things you read about thyroxine not working as it does work in 85% of cases. For someone who has caught it early, like you have, you have a good chance of feeling much better on thyroxine. (Note: I'm not medically qualified, my knowledge comes from having hypothyroidism for the last 34 years.)

Many hypothyroid people are low in a number of key vitamins and minerals. So it's worth checking vitamin B12 and folate, Ferritin, iron and % iron saturation, vitamin D. All of these are checked by a blood test. If any of these are low you will feel rubbish. Best wishes and good luck with the doc!