Normal Thyroid levels?

Question

Here is what I am wanting to know. What is the normal thyroid levels and then if the numbers are higher then the norm is that hyperthyroid or hypothyroid. Then if it is lower then the normal is that hypothyroid or hyperthyroid. To begin with I was diagnosed with Hyperthyroidism (graves disease) then this last time i was in They said I was hypothyroid but they kept me on the same medication. I am so confused at the moment.

Answer 1

for measuring thyroid function, there are three readings that are of concerned, one is TSH level and also free thyroxine level(FT4 and FT3) . the normal FT4 range is 9-25 pmol/L. a high FT4 with a low TSH will signifies hyperthyroid and a low FT4 with a high TSH will signifies hypothyroid. i think in your condition, you may be treated for hyperthyroid with medication and thus your hormone level has fall down and causes you to be hypothyroid.

Answer 2

The normal levels are shown on your blood tests in brackets. You are entitled to a copy of these from your doctor, just ask. Then you can compare your levels with what is in the brackets.

Usually tested is TSH which is Thyroid Stimulating Hormone. This is the messenger from the brain that tells the thyroid to secrete more thyroid hormone when needed. TSH will be low with hyperthyroidism.

Also tested are the levels of Thyroid Hormone which is made up of more than one chemical - again you will see the normal range on your blood test results. Look for T3 and T4 and maybe Free T3 and Free T4.

I hope this isn't too confusing, this is not really the format to learn about this subject and I've tried to simplify.

Hypothyroidism means underactive thyroid.

Hyperthyroidism means overactive.

You had an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroid). Graves disease is the autoimmune type of hyperthyroidism. It means that your body is working against itself with the thyroid not recognising the correct chemical signals from the brain. The body has created antibodies to TSH therefore it continues to produce thyroid hormone until there are excess amounts in the blood.

The drugs given for an overactive thyroid have bad side effects. They can damage your blood cells and often lead to an underactive thyroid. It appears that the drug has caused this for you. I suggest you ask your doctor for a clear explanation why you are being kept on the same medication.

However, when spoken, the two words often sound the same. Are you sure they said hypo and not hyper?

Answer 3

The term 'hypothyroid' is confusing, because it gets used in different ways. 'Hypothyroid' can mean that someone's thyroid is not working properly. But is is also used when someone has been given medication to suppress an overactive thyroid. I'm guessing what has happened is that you had an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroid) and they put you on medication (maybe carbimazole??) to slow down the thyroid. But perhaps when they saw your next blood results they saw that your thyroid had slowed down too much, to a hypothyroid level, i.e. the levels of thyroid hormones were now lower than they should be. Probably what they docs mean is that the medication has had a stronger effect than they expexted. Maybe they have kept you on the same medication but reduced the dose a bit?