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Thyroid in children

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leggott

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533
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Surrey
Hi, I have just received a letter following my daughters annual review. We have been advised that the she has raised Thyroid peroxidise antibodies, suggestive of autoimmune thyroid disease. However, her Thyroid function is well within target range and no treatment is needed at this stage.
As you can imagine I'm now very worried about this and don't really understand thyroid problems. If anyone can give me any information about this it would be gratefuly received. I have left a message on my nurses phone but as it is the weekend she won't be working.

We've just managed to get her and my sons HBA1c to 6.1 & 6.4 which I was elated about, but having just got this letter I'm feeling very deflated and down again. Leggott
 
Sorry to hear that leggot, hopefully someone will be along soon who may help.

Nigel
 
Leggott, I'm sorry to read your post. Things are going so well with your children's BG control it must feel like a set back for you to receive this news. I'm not sure what it means. I asked our consultant a few years ago what it would mean if the thyroid test came back with a problem and he said it just means taking tablets to control it. But it was a very brief discussion and I'm not sure how accurate that is. Hopefully someone will be able to give you the right advice and set your mind at ease. Hugs from me.
 
It's not uncommon to have thyroid disease as well as T1 diabetes, as both are autoimmue diseases generally called hypothyroidisum (sp) it is easily treated with thyroxine tablets...

There are several symptoms that will suggest that the body is struggling with the lack of thyroid function these are:

Feeling the cold
Lathargic
Weight gain or difficulty losing weight

These are the 3 main symptoms, Theroid function is one of the blood tests done when they take bloods for the HbA1c, so your daughter will be and has been constantly monitored, so they will more than likely intervien with medication if she becomes what is termed sub-clinical, which basically means borderline, if she wasn't diabetic they wouldn't intervine at the point with medication...

The medication is a very small tablet called thyroxine, it comes in verious doses as the dose does need to be matched to the needs, they will take a educated guess to what is the best dose to start, then around about 6 weeks or so, they will take a blood test to see how it's all going and adjust from there... And then constant monitoring and dose adjusted if/when required...

As you say she's in range at the moment so would suspect she be at the lower end near to borderline, it may well stay like this or it can improve.. I have what's termed sub-clinical hypothyoridisum (sp) and it's gone under, then back to normal and back again for the last 25 years as it was originally picked up with bloods taken when I pregnant with twins!

But it's still worth talking to your nurse about it...
 
hi there,
i know a fair bit about thyroid problems and there are children on here who do also have it,
i started with thyroid problems after the birth of my second child..i had no symptoms and had to take thyroxine for a short while..this was post partum thyroiditis, my thyroid was underactive,
this then cleared and came back after my 3rd child but sadly i became extremely ill in crisis with an overactive thyroid and ended up in hospital(this wont happen to your little darling as my drs wrong diagnosed) then i had meds to lower it for a few mnths then it went totally underactive so i have been on thyroxine many yrs now since my early twenties,
basically the thyroid gland is a gland in the neck and easy way of explaining is that if underactive,things slow down,e.g put weight on, feel very cold, really tired, loss of periods, slow heartbeat etc, overactive it speeds up , anxiety, tiredness but mind racing, extra periods, weight loss, constipation etc,
i hope you get what i mean... a dr once told me that the thyroid is the music conductor and without it working properly the orchestra doesnt work very well... im awaiting tests at the moment as mine has gone slightly over active so will need a reduction in medication , it is quite often seen in people with other auto immune disorders and once on the correct medication ,you feel fine so please try not to worry as its one of the best auto immune disorders to have,

hope this helped, if i can help pm me
amanda
 
Hi Leggott,

Khaleb has been on Thyroxin all this year for his auto-immune hypothyroidism. Khaleb's immune system has killed off his Thyroid gland so without the Thyroxin his Pituitary Gland would continue to send TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) to try and get it working.

The tablets haven't been any hassle but all the extra blood tests have been a little heart breaking. When Khaleb initially started on thyroxin he had some hypos (I was warned of this) and converted to 'sick day' management by waiting for his blood sugar to raise before giving any short acting insulin. He still had a couple of lows below 2mmol. Things settled after a few weeks and he has only recently had his first dose adjustment. Hopefully he'll only need yearly blood tests now.

I didn't really notice that anything was wrong with Khaleb. He hadn't grown much but with Down's kids that is fairly common. His hands and feet were a little cold at times but it was summer so that wasn't very noticeable either. I did notice he had very dry skin but it was easy to put that down to being in the pool. I have seen significant learning since Khaleb has had treatment as he was making very little progress.

After getting another diagnosis I was very upset but to be honest it hasn't really been a big deal. Compared to diabetes it is barely a blip.
 
Thank you for all your informative and supportive replies. I've now been told that my son is producing antibodies for celiac disease and will have to have a biopsy! If it's not one thing it's another. I've been told that there is a 50/50 chance he'll have it, but now it is another thing on my mind. I'm feeling like the worst parent in the world right now. I can't help blaming myself and worrying that has this all come about because of something I've done or not done! I know deep down it's not the end of the world but I keep thinking what's next.....
 
Don't be feeling down. I think you know that you've done nothing wrong and this sort of thing just happens. Hopefully you wont end up having to treat either potential problem. I have faced another diagnosis each year and have recently been told Khaleb has some level of hearing loss. I try not to think of what else will land on my plate and just keep going as it is really no use worrying about what might be around the corner.

Keep smiling :)
 
leggott said:
I'm feeling like the worst parent in the world right now. I can't help blaming myself and worrying that has this all come about because of something I've done or not done!
Click to expand...
please don't feel that! Thyroid, diabetes and coeliac disease are all linked up - that's one reason why if you have one, they often do (and should) keep an eye on you for the others. And although nobody really knows why some people get type 1, you can be pretty confident it's not something you've done wrong as a parent.
Think of it the other way round - because you are a good parent, your child is getting good treatment and care nice and early, and getting lots of support from you as well. That's all fantastic. Don't think of illness as a punishment.
 
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