More on TSH receptor antibodies - everyone should read this...

[Guest guest]

I went looking anyway.. this I found interesting.. there is TONS more.. but this info pertains to some of you guys as well so wanted to pass it along... first the link...

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/graves_disease/98900

and now the article:

TSH Receptor Antibodies

Author: elaine moore

Published on: March 3, 2003

Related Subject(s): Not Indexed

It’s long been known that some patients treated for hyperthyroidism continue to have a suppressed or low TSH for many months, even though their thyroid hormone levels (T4/FT4 and T3/FT3) are within the normal range. At one time it was thought that hyperthyroidism caused the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis to become ineffective. It was thought that the pituitary was no longer able to secrete TSH as a means of regulating thyroid function. Studies conducted in Amsterdam show that this is not the case. The reason TSH stays suppressed in some individuals is not related to pituitary function. Instead, it is the presence of TSH receptor antibodies (TRAb) that cause TSH suppression. Researchers have found that the pituitary gland itself has receptors for TSH. When TSH levels are adequate, the pituitary stops secreting TSH. However, the pituitary, like the thyroid gland, recognizes stimulating TSH receptor antibodies as if they were TSH. When stimulating TRAb, which are also known as thyroid stimulating immunoglobulins or TSI, are present, the pituitary stops secreting TSH. Researchers demonstrated this by injecting TSH receptor antibodies into rats extracted from human patients with Graves’ disease. Other rats were given immunoglobulins (antibodies) with no effect on thyroid function. The rats administered TSH receptor antibodies exhibited a lowering of TSH, with the lowest levels seen after 48 hours. This study shows that in patients with hyperthyroidism caused by Graves’ disease, TSH secretion may be inhibited not only by the high serum T4 concentration but also by TSH receptor antibodies. Unfortunately, doctors who are unfamiliar with these studies, often prescribe high doses of ATDS thinking that the patient is still hyperthyroid. And after RAI ablation, when TSI levels rise, doctors often withhold thyroid replacement hormone thinking that their patients are still hyperthyroid when they may actually be hypothyroid. Now that the effects of TSH receptor antibodies are known, TSH is no longer considered the mainstay for monitoring GD patients. While many doctors have long known that GD patients should not be monitored with TSH levels alone, some doctors continue to do so as a way of reducing medical costs. In the long run, this can be more expensive as patients continue to search for effective treatment. Besides interfering with laboratory results, the presence of TSH receptor antibodies is a sign of active Graves’ disease. According to researchers in France, persistent high levels of TRAB or TSI suggest that remission has not yet been achieved even if patients otherwise show a good response to anti-thyroid drugs (ATDs). Because ATDs effectively suppress the immune system and reduce both TRAb and thyroid hormone levels, doctors may be misled into thinking that lowered thyroid hormone levels are a sign of remission. If ATDs are withdrawn while the immune system is still producing TRAb, the levels will eventually rise after the ATDs are withdrawn. And the patient will relapse. Effective management of patients on ATDs includes ensuring that TSI levels are <2% activity before stopping medical treatment. References: Orgiazzi J, Madec AM, Reduction of the risk of relapse after withdrawal of medical therapy for Graves’ disease, Thyroid 2002 Oct;12(10): 849-853. Utiger, , Thyrotropin-receptor antibodies in patients with hyperthyroidism inhibit thyrotropin (TSH) secretion, Thyroid Foundation of America, www.tsh.org/research/new/utiger5/1

[Guest guest]

This is why I was asking more questions recently about vague references from a lot of articles as to WHAT antibodies are specific to Grave's Disease. I have had a thought myself recently that, though rare, I may very well have had Grave's, as well as Hashi's. My reasoning on this is the long length of time that I KNOW that I was hyperthyroid and couldn't even think straight. I still don't feel well, since hypo, but I didn't feel sick then, but it was still a nightmare time for me. Extreme weight loss, extreme anxiety, extreme activity, extreme EVERYthing for several yrs. I might be wrong, but I've never read this hyper length of time in anyone but Grave's patients. Am I wrong in saying that the hyper length of time would not be as long for Hashi's patients? Around 6 to 7 yrs is an awfully long time for a hyper Hashi's swing, but I am as certain of what this was as I am my own name. It's just a gut instinct, and I've never been tested for the specific TSH receptor antibody which is what, the Thyroid Releasing antibody or TRab? I was never even told nor had a copy of my original thyroid labs, when I was first diagnosed hypo, but it was before this that it all took place. I just think it's weird that I developed these shakes in one day, every few hrs. It was only on that day that I no longer had that nervous, unsettled feeling, even though what was happening to me during those hrs was scary also.

More on TSH receptor antibodies - everyone should read this...

I went looking anyway.. this I found interesting.. there is TONS more.. but this info pertains to some of you guys as well so wanted to pass it along... first the link...

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/graves_disease/98900

[Guest guest]

This is why I was asking more questions recently about vague references from a lot of articles as to WHAT antibodies are specific to Grave's Disease. I have had a thought myself recently that, though rare, I may very well have had Grave's, as well as Hashi's. My reasoning on this is the long length of time that I KNOW that I was hyperthyroid and couldn't even think straight. I still don't feel well, since hypo, but I didn't feel sick then, but it was still a nightmare time for me. Extreme weight loss, extreme anxiety, extreme activity, extreme EVERYthing for several yrs. I might be wrong, but I've never read this hyper length of time in anyone but Grave's patients. Am I wrong in saying that the hyper length of time would not be as long for Hashi's patients? Around 6 to 7 yrs is an awfully long time for a hyper Hashi's swing, but I am as certain of what this was as I am my own name. It's just a gut instinct, and I've never been tested for the specific TSH receptor antibody which is what, the Thyroid Releasing antibody or TRab? I was never even told nor had a copy of my original thyroid labs, when I was first diagnosed hypo, but it was before this that it all took place. I just think it's weird that I developed these shakes in one day, every few hrs. It was only on that day that I no longer had that nervous, unsettled feeling, even though what was happening to me during those hrs was scary also.

More on TSH receptor antibodies - everyone should read this...

I went looking anyway.. this I found interesting.. there is TONS more.. but this info pertains to some of you guys as well so wanted to pass it along... first the link...

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/graves_disease/98900

[Guest guest]

This is why I was asking more questions recently about vague references from a lot of articles as to WHAT antibodies are specific to Grave's Disease. I have had a thought myself recently that, though rare, I may very well have had Grave's, as well as Hashi's. My reasoning on this is the long length of time that I KNOW that I was hyperthyroid and couldn't even think straight. I still don't feel well, since hypo, but I didn't feel sick then, but it was still a nightmare time for me. Extreme weight loss, extreme anxiety, extreme activity, extreme EVERYthing for several yrs. I might be wrong, but I've never read this hyper length of time in anyone but Grave's patients. Am I wrong in saying that the hyper length of time would not be as long for Hashi's patients? Around 6 to 7 yrs is an awfully long time for a hyper Hashi's swing, but I am as certain of what this was as I am my own name. It's just a gut instinct, and I've never been tested for the specific TSH receptor antibody which is what, the Thyroid Releasing antibody or TRab? I was never even told nor had a copy of my original thyroid labs, when I was first diagnosed hypo, but it was before this that it all took place. I just think it's weird that I developed these shakes in one day, every few hrs. It was only on that day that I no longer had that nervous, unsettled feeling, even though what was happening to me during those hrs was scary also.

More on TSH receptor antibodies - everyone should read this...

I went looking anyway.. this I found interesting.. there is TONS more.. but this info pertains to some of you guys as well so wanted to pass it along... first the link...

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/graves_disease/98900