Hey— do my eyes look Graves'-like? I didn't thinks so. They do retain some symptoms, but look fairly normal.Last month, my FT4 was low, but I was counseled to remain on too high a PTU dosage. I ignored that!
I just got back some rather expeditious lab work from the endo today. Since I had confessed to him that I had suffered from kidney stones at least twice since last June, he checked the "estimated glomerular filtration rate" and decreed that at 83.4 mL/min, my kidney function was normal. Quite a relief, since it was sub-par last January.
PTU has not damaged my liver nor caused dangerous agranulocytosis, as evidenced by the AST, ALT and WBC (Am I sounding like a nurse, yet?).
Last time I had my FT3 and FT4 tested, the FT4 was low, and my heart was as irregular as the "Take Five" drum solo, thanks to a thyroid dipping too low. Dr. Endo explained to me that FT4 did not appear as easily with PTU treatment—something about "inefficiency"—although he counseled me to remain on my dosage of 60 mg. per day of PTU. As I said, I ignored that and went on 50 mg. QD, taken in the morning, and my heart quit beating funny. And now my thyroid profile is normal. (I am told to ignore any TSH value as long as FT4 and FT3 are within the healthy range, preferably mid-range). My values this past Friday:
TSH.0.45 (down)
FT3: 2,9 (up)
(FT4: 0.7 (up!)
So "Hooray!"
Such a struggle to remain normal. I want to keep my hair regenerating rather than falling out, so I am glad to avoid another serious dip into hypothyroid territory. The moral of the story is credited to Elaine Moore, a fellow Graves' sufferer: "The TSH level does not matter; pay attention to the FT3 and FT4. They should be mid-range." The secondary moral of the story is that the endocrinologist may not be the wisest party.
Bless his overworked heart!
And so it goes. My eyes seem to have improved and I continue to hope for remission.
4 comments:
Hi- yes, you definitely sound like a nurse!
But I looked over my lab work again and my endo tested my liver counts as well and my WBC, AST and ALT are fine too- so no liver problems for me.
I am still really confused by the
T4 and T3...I have to look them up every time to keep them straight in my head. There is no T3 on my labs so I will ask him again to include it. And I will read up on the TSH from Elaine Moore ( I have her book). My endo does seem concerned about that one. It has finally started to come up for me but my T4 went back down so he had me eliminate a dose of PTU. And as mentioned I don't know my T3. Is it okay to just refer to them that way without the F?
Anyway- your eyes look normal to me. Good! And so far, I'm the same way...thankfully!
Thanks again!
Hey, Kelly,
FT3 and FT4 are different substances and have different values from T3 and T4, so best to avoid confusion and keep them straight.
According to Moore, TSH can even be nil in labs, so long as there are adequate levels of FT4 and FT3. When it starts to rise, you're either overmedicated or nearing remission.
The right eye is still puffy but does not look a lot bigger when looking straight ahead, just when it looks down. I think the worst symptoms went away sometimes between July and September. I just realized that I do not have continual tear spillage from my right eye anymore. I hope the puffiness goes away (I hate bags), but can live with this. The double vision is still there, but no worse and not troubling me in my primary fields of vision. Here's hoping that will clear up. (There is something like a 45% chance that double vision clears up as the muscles shrink)
Another thing that would happen to my eye last spring that no longer happens is called "chemosis" and is a pillowy swelling of the eye white. Feels as if something is in the eye, and the surface of the eye white buckles when you blink, like a fluid-filled blister. I had forgotten all about that "fun."
My husband developed pinkeye today and looks just nasty. I was able to give him some of my artificial tears to soothe his eyes. I seldom need them anymore.
Speaking of artificial tears, the only kind I like are preservative-free Tears Naturale. All the others make my eyes feel even more irritated and dry.
Beth-thanks for the tip on that brand of artificial tears- now that you mention it, I think I felt somewhat irriated too after using the brand I use now. I don't have to use them as much but I'll look for that kind to have on hand.
Thanks for the other info as well. I appreciate your thorough comments.
Hi there! Do you think I could possibly talk to you? can you write me at willow200@aol.com
Thanks! Annette
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