HPT axis
-
TSH “can be very misleading” during thyroid therapy, say researchers
How many treated hypothyroid patients’ TSH has fallen below range even when both their thyroid hormones are in normal range and when they have no symptoms or signs of hyperactivity or hypermetabolism? In my observation on thyroid patient forums, the answer is “too many.” It’s common among thyroid patients to resort to such forums for…
-
Thyrotoxicosis vs. Low TSH
Our medical system has invested so much in the TSH test that we’ve given it authority to override medical discernment about thyrotoxicosis. The oft-repeated mantras that “TSH is the most sensitive and specific test” and “the only necessary test” have blinded many doctors to the diverse influences that can suppress or inflate TSH secretion. Many…
-
Thyrotoxicosis? Many factors can lower TSH
Many substances and health factors can, independently of thyroid hormones, lower TSH secretion significantly. These factors are not listed in Braverman & Cooper’s chapter on thyrotoxicosis in Werner & Ingbar’s The Thyroid textbook, 10th edition 2013, because their chapter avoids defining the syndrome by a low TSH. Nevertheless, these TSH-lowering factors should always be mentioned…
-
Analyze thyroid lab results using SPINA-Thyr
This post walks through the process of using the SPINA-Thyr to interpret thyroid lab test results. OVERVIEW SPINA-Thyr is a free diagnostic application developed by research endocrinologists who use it in peer-reviewed medical research. SPINA-Thyr has been in development since the late 1990s under the leadership of Dr. Johannes Dietrich, Specialist in internal medicine, endocrinology and…
-
TSHR Antibodies can distort TSH secretion
There’s an underestimated, under-studied TSH feedback loop that almost nobody talks about: The ultrashort feedback loop at the pituitary gland. By means of acting on this feedback loop, a thyroid antibody may have a direct effect on TSH secretion as well as our T4 and T3 levels. This antibody is far more prevalent and clinically…