Here is article about the flawed use today of thyroid laboratory tests and lab reference ranges.
It talks about how endocrinologists and doctors want thyroid patients’ lab results to conform to their standard lab ranges.
The article illustrates how this is harming the health of many thyroid patients.
I have written a lot about the poor use of thyroid lab testing – this speaks to this point totally.
Here’s the article:
https://thyroidpatients.ca/2020/02/15/biochemical-bigotry-the-drive-to-normalize-thyroid-lab-results/
Being on any T3 medication, even a small amount combined with T4 begins to make the thyroid lab ranges too restrictive. The ranges were developed based on healthy people, or those on T4 therapy only. They often do NOT apply to people on T3 in combination, OR on T3 alone. There are good reasons for this, and reasons that most doctors have not considered.
On T3-Only, people sometimes need to have an FT3 level which is at or just over the top of the FT3 reference range. The FT3 reference range is therefore not suitable for those on T3-Only. This is because these people have very little T4 and there is no on-going, hidden T4 to T3 conversion occurring in their cells. See my blog for more information on this: https://paulrobinsonthyroid.com/can-ft3-be-used-to-manage-liothyronine-t3-thyroid-treatment/
I believe for all medications symptoms and signs ought to be the predominant method of assessing thyroid dosage efficacy. Thyroid lab test results must include FT3 because it is the most important measure but these results should only be used as an indication of whether the numbers are changing correctly with dosage changes.
Thyroid lab results should not be used to control patients’ medication levels, as this is ‘bio-chemical bigotry’ as the author has written about so eloquently.
The current approach is definitely harming the health of thyroid patients.
Best wishes,
Paul
