Re: Block and Replace therapy (BRT)??

[Guest guest]

Hi Aysha: It is a slow process from the standpoint that the endo starts you

on a very low dose of ptu or tapazole and slowly progresses until you reach a

dose that shuts the thyroid down. The " shut down " dose then becomes your

maintenance dose. Replacement can be either synthroid or armour. I started

on synthroid, then switched to armour. This too is a slow process,

increasing the supplemental thyroid until you reach mid-range. I was having

my blood tested every 6 weeks throughout the process.

The Japanese reportedly had a high success rate with their brt patients

within 12 months. My endo had read about their study and that's why he had a

target period of 12 months for his 10 patients.

May I ask, are you interested in brt for yourself, and if so, why? Joyce

[Guest guest]

I was under the impression that BRT is a slow process and you should be

on Synthroid for 5 years minimum. Thanks for the info though.

Aysha

arlanth-@... wrote:

original article:hyperthyroidism/?start=45

65

> Hi: I was on block and replace from Sept. 1994 to Sept. 1998. My

endo put

> 10 of his patients on brt, including me, and it didn't work for any

of us.

> The other 9 had rai after one year on brt. In Sept. 1998, I started

taking

> just enough PTU to control my thyroid. This was my decision, not my

endo.

> He wanted me to have rai. I do have regular blood tests about every

4-6 mos.

> so I can adjust the PTU accordingly. Joyce

[Guest guest]

Thank you for your response Joyce,

I am just looking for alternatives to RAI and surgery for my Graves - I also

have TED - it varies from day to day regarding how obvious it is.

I have Graves for 4-5 years now and it is NOT going into remission and would

like to try alternative medicine.

Aysha

--

On Wed, 15 Mar 2000 23:00:54 ARLANTHA wrote:

>Hi Aysha: It is a slow process from the standpoint that the endo starts you

>on a very low dose of ptu or tapazole and slowly progresses until you reach a

>dose that shuts the thyroid down. The " shut down " dose then becomes your

>maintenance dose. Replacement can be either synthroid or armour. I started

>on synthroid, then switched to armour. This too is a slow process,

>increasing the supplemental thyroid until you reach mid-range. I was having

>my blood tested every 6 weeks throughout the process.

>

>The Japanese reportedly had a high success rate with their brt patients

>within 12 months. My endo had read about their study and that's why he had a

>target period of 12 months for his 10 patients.

>

>May I ask, are you interested in brt for yourself, and if so, why? Joyce

>

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>GET A NEXTCARD VISA, in 30 seconds! Get rates as low as 0.0%

>Intro or 9.9% Fixed APR and no hidden fees. Apply NOW!

>1/937/5/_/6563/_/953179305/

>

>-- Create a poll/survey for your group!

>-- vote?listname=hyperthyroidism & m=1

>

>

>

--

Join the most exciting community of women on the web!

iVillage.com's FREE membership gets you private email,

your own home page, special discounts and sweepstakes,

and dozens of problem-solving tools.

http://www.ivillage.com/frame/join_email.html

[Guest guest]

Hi Aysha: If I had known in 1994 what I know now, I doubt I would have tried

brt. And for sure, I'm sorry I stayed on it for 4 years. As for the ted,

I've experienced just about everything including protrusion and retracted

lids. I was always looking for wrap around sunglasses to hide my eyes. For

a period of time my left eye was protruding quite a bit more than my right

which gave me an unusual appearance to say the least. My endo said my ted

was " mild " but I was mortified because my eyes had always been one of me best

features. At their worse, I think the protrusion in my eyes measured 19.5

and 18.5. I believe normal for me is about 17.5. But, even without

protrusion, we can be miserable if our lids are retracted. That gives us a

staring appearance, and makes it difficult to look someone in the eye while

chatting. For the last 6 months, my eyes have had a normal appearance and

they feel good. At my endo appt. on 3-2-00, my eyes measured 18 and 17.5.

As I said previously, I believe taking just enough ptu to keep my thyroid

levels at mid range have helped my eyes a lot. Are you taking ptu or

tapazole now? How is ted affecting your eyes?

This board has about 186 members; some of them are in remission and they

certainly are supportive. has done much research on ted and you might

find something in the archives to help you. Upon 's recommendation, I

gave up coffee and chocolate, and I believe that has helped me quite a bit.

Take real good care of yourself. Joyce

[Guest guest]

Joyce,

I know how you feel regarding the TED. I have both retraction of the eyelids and

the protrusion. Yesterday when they were measured they were both 18 but normally

the right eye is worse. My eyes were one of my best features but not any more -

I am so self consious of them. They are also extremly light sensitive.

I am on Tapazole 25mg (after 5 years) - still no sign of remission. I could

handle the Graves if I didn't have the TED as well - and worse again I've just

been diagnosed with Diabetes (Type 1 - autoimmune). It's difficult to cope with

all of these illnesses.

I'm so happy for you that your eyes are doing better. Do you plan to stay on

meds indefinately?? I am scared of the RAI and am changing endo's as I am not

happy with the one I have.

I will look into giving up coffee but I don't drink much of it (1/2 cup a day)

and chocolate is out at the moment as I'm doing Low Carb (for my diabetes). I

need to set a quitting date for smoking - I know that has to help. I've noticed

that my eyes are better in the mornings - I don't know why that is. How is Ptu

different from Tapazole??

Thanks for the information and God Bless,

Aysha

--

On Fri, 17 Mar 2000 02:02:33 ARLANTHA wrote:

>Hi Aysha: If I had known in 1994 what I know now, I doubt I would have tried

>brt. And for sure, I'm sorry I stayed on it for 4 years. As for the ted,

>I've experienced just about everything including protrusion and retracted

>lids. I was always looking for wrap around sunglasses to hide my eyes. For

>a period of time my left eye was protruding quite a bit more than my right

>which gave me an unusual appearance to say the least. My endo said my ted

>was " mild " but I was mortified because my eyes had always been one of me best

>features. At their worse, I think the protrusion in my eyes measured 19.5

>and 18.5. I believe normal for me is about 17.5. But, even without

>protrusion, we can be miserable if our lids are retracted. That gives us a

>staring appearance, and makes it difficult to look someone in the eye while

>chatting. For the last 6 months, my eyes have had a normal appearance and

>they feel good. At my endo appt. on 3-2-00, my eyes measured 18 and 17.5.

>As I said previously, I believe taking just enough ptu to keep my thyroid

>levels at mid range have helped my eyes a lot. Are you taking ptu or

>tapazole now? How is ted affecting your eyes?

>

>This board has about 186 members; some of them are in remission and they

>certainly are supportive. has done much research on ted and you might

>find something in the archives to help you. Upon 's recommendation, I

>gave up coffee and chocolate, and I believe that has helped me quite a bit.

>Take real good care of yourself. Joyce

>

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>MAXIMIZE YOUR CARD, MINIMIZE YOUR RATE!

>Get a NextCard Visa, in 30 seconds! Get rates as low as

>0.0% Intro or 9.9% Fixed APR and no hidden fees.

>Apply NOW!

>1/2122/7/_/6563/_/953276576/

>

>-- Easily schedule meetings and events using the group calendar!

>-- cal?listname=hyperthyroidism & m=1

>

>

>

--

Join the most exciting community of women on the web!

iVillage.com's FREE membership gets you private email,

your own home page, special discounts and sweepstakes,

and dozens of problem-solving tools.

http://www.ivillage.com/frame/join_email.html

[Guest guest]

Aysha: It doesn't sound like you have much protrusion if both eyes measure

18; however " normal " depends on the person. Do you know what your eyes

should measure to be normal? With lid retraction my eyes felt like they were

protruding more than what they measured. I thought lids retracted only when

thyroid levels were high, but I found out through personal experience that

they will also retract when levels are too low. My endo acknowledged that

this happens, and said no one knows why. When you have your blood tested,

does your endo give you a copy of the results? If not, ask for a copy before

you leave his office. In fact, you might want to obtain copies for the last

couple of years, just for your own info. Does he check your T4? If so, is

it at mid-range? How often do you have your blood checked? Is the 25 mg. of

tapazole you're on now lower than when you started?

I am also afraid of rai, and also I think it's stupid to kill the thyroid

when it isn't the problem. I have been both hypo and hyper and I can tell

you that I prefer hyper. For one thing, the supplemental thyroid never

allowed me to feel as good as I do on my own thyroid produced hormones. Yes,

I will stay on the ptu as long as necessary.

With regards to smoking, my paperback copy of " Your thyroid, a Home

Reference " by Drs. Wood, and Ridgway, on p. 8 says: " Recently smoking

has also been linked to the development of hyperthyroidism, but again, the

way in which the disease is triggered by tobacco is unknown " .

The difference between tapazole and ptu? My knowledge is very limited;

however I do know that tapazole is usually taken once a day whereas ptu is

taken about every 8 hours. did some research on ted, and found that

tapazole might be of more benefit to the eyes than ptu. I wish I had known

that before I started the ptu; I'd be reluctant to change after this length

of time.

How long have your lids been retracted? If you know what your thyroid

levels are, maybe we can figure out why they haven't returned to normal.

Take really good care of yourself (and try to give up cigarettes). Joyce

[Guest guest]

Joyce,

I haven't got my lab results but will ask for copies of them. I am changing

endo's in 2 weeks and hopefully will be able to have a better relationship with

this woman. Part of the problem is I didn't have health insurance for a long

time and didn't really go to the endo as often as I should - then went overseas

and am now back in the US. I am kinda starting over in terms of lab tests.

I started on 30mg and was down to 10mg Tapazole but when I did my lab tests

again the doc increased my dosage.

I got TED shortly after being diagnosed with GD but it was very slight and only

in my right eye - now it is both and worse still is the eyelid retraction - that

is worse than the bugginess really. I wear glasses and have such a hard time as

I think they draw attention to my eyes.

I am getting my lab work done on Wed and will post the results in a couple of

weeks - maybe someone can enlighten me.

I am going to start with Copper supplements and am going to quit smoking as I

know this will help some. I have read that your TED stabilizes after 2 years???

I've had it for a while and hate to think I will have to live like this forever.

Thanks for your help and God bless.

--

On Sat, 18 Mar 2000 01:31:32 ARLANTHA wrote:

>Aysha: It doesn't sound like you have much protrusion if both eyes measure

>18; however " normal " depends on the person. Do you know what your eyes

>should measure to be normal? With lid retraction my eyes felt like they were

>protruding more than what they measured. I thought lids retracted only when

>thyroid levels were high, but I found out through personal experience that

>they will also retract when levels are too low. My endo acknowledged that

>this happens, and said no one knows why. When you have your blood tested,

>does your endo give you a copy of the results? If not, ask for a copy before

>you leave his office. In fact, you might want to obtain copies for the last

>couple of years, just for your own info. Does he check your T4? If so, is

>it at mid-range? How often do you have your blood checked? Is the 25 mg. of

>tapazole you're on now lower than when you started?

>

>I am also afraid of rai, and also I think it's stupid to kill the thyroid

>when it isn't the problem. I have been both hypo and hyper and I can tell

>you that I prefer hyper. For one thing, the supplemental thyroid never

>allowed me to feel as good as I do on my own thyroid produced hormones. Yes,

>I will stay on the ptu as long as necessary.

>

>With regards to smoking, my paperback copy of " Your thyroid, a Home

>Reference " by Drs. Wood, and Ridgway, on p. 8 says: " Recently smoking

>has also been linked to the development of hyperthyroidism, but again, the

>way in which the disease is triggered by tobacco is unknown " .

>

>The difference between tapazole and ptu? My knowledge is very limited;

>however I do know that tapazole is usually taken once a day whereas ptu is

>taken about every 8 hours. did some research on ted, and found that

>tapazole might be of more benefit to the eyes than ptu. I wish I had known

>that before I started the ptu; I'd be reluctant to change after this length

>of time.

>

>How long have your lids been retracted? If you know what your thyroid

>levels are, maybe we can figure out why they haven't returned to normal.

>Take really good care of yourself (and try to give up cigarettes). Joyce

>

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>GET A NEXTCARD VISA, in 30 seconds! Get rates as low as 2.9%

>Intro or 9.9% Fixed APR and no hidden fees. Apply NOW!

>1/936/7/_/6563/_/953361113/

>

>-- Talk to your group with your own voice!

>-- VoiceChatPage?listName=hyperthyroidism & m=1

>

>

>

--

Join the most exciting community of women on the web!

iVillage.com's FREE membership gets you private email,

your own home page, special discounts and sweepstakes,

and dozens of problem-solving tools.

http://www.ivillage.com/frame/join_email.html