Lab Results - need help interpreting

[FitFossil]

They tested all sorts of stuff. Main things I'm interested in is thyroid and hormones, but I wonder about some of the things too. Can anyone offer insight into what these numbers mean, what they relate to as far as "the big picture" and any suggestions? Thanks! P.S. I'm 38 yo female

Hormones:
Testosterone - 23 (Normal levels are listed as 49-120) I'm assuming this is "Total" as opposed to "Free", which I know is the test that really tells you something.) I guess seeing that Total is low, I'll have the "Free" test next which is more expensive. Can anyone tell me why I have all the symptoms of low test, BUT I get acne?

Are these other hormones high or low relative to each other? I can see the ranges of "Normal", but what does it mean to be on the high end or low end of Normal? I had the test on Day 16 of my menstrual cycle.)
Progesterone - 1.5 (Normals are from 0.7 - 17.8 for my phase of cycle)
Estrogen - 335 (Normals are from 122 - 437 for my phase of cycle)
Prolactin 7.5 (Normals from 3 - 20)

Thyroid:
T4 (free) - 1.1 (Normals from 0.7 - 1.9)
TSH - 3.7 (Normals from 0.5 - 4.7)

Other stuff I wondered about since they're out of normal range - what are these anyway?

Chloride - 99 (norm 101-111)
CO2 - 33 (norm 22-31)
RDW - 11.1 (norm 11.5-14)
Absolute Neut - 6.38 (norm 1.3-6)

Any help making sense of this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[FitFossil]

bump

 

[Torchy]

Bumping for ya...

 

[keiko]

I think that TSH is worth looking at.

I feel best when my TSH is around 1 (and even below! but don't tell my Dr.)

If you're depressed, can't burn fat, losing hair, have "brain fog", are cold a great deal , etc. you might do better with some thyroid meds. Take a look at the info on the www.about.com thyroid site.

The new wisdom is that women feel much better with a very low TSH--no matter what the "normal" lab range is.

You may find that your Dr. is reluctant to medicate you with a TSH number like that. But, if you have any of the symptoms of hypothyroidism--why worry about the number when how you feel is important. You may need to see a proper endocrinologist (and I'd pick a female, personally).

Don't eat soy, don't eat cabbage, etc. for a while and see if you feel perkier.

 

[FitFossil]

Thanks Keiko,

I will check more into the TSH. It seems that slow thyroid and low testosterone share many of the same symptoms, and I'm not sure if I should address one issue before the other, both at the same time, or what?

I rarely eat cabbage or soy, but after what you said, I'll try to avoid it.

 

[Punschkrapfen]

can't tell you for sure, but check out these sites:

http://www.newshe.com/factsheets/testosterone_faq.shtml
http://www.mmhc.com/jgsm/articles/JGSM0001/davis.html
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/jun7/davis/davis.html

you should get your free testosterone measured. If SHGB is low, free testosterone could be ok while total testosterone is low. And free test is the only bioavailable testosterone.

http://www.aruplab.com/testbltn/biofreetest.html

 

[MS]

Assuming the T levels were stated in ng/dl then they only measured total T and not free T. Either way it's on the low side of things, but that's only a problem if you're feeling unwell. It's possible to have low total T but still have enough free T for good health. However, if I were you I would go back and get free T tested as well. All the other stuff you listed is pretty normal....nothing at all to worry about. Even the things that didn't fall exactly in the normal range are all very close to normal and are nothing to complain about.

 

[FitFossil]

...you should get your free testosterone measured. If SHGB is low, free testosterone could be ok while total testosterone is low. And free test is the only bioavailable testosterone....

Thanks Punschkrapfen, I did not know that free test could still be ok even if total test was low. That's interesting about the SHBG.

 

[FitFossil]

Thanks MS, I'm glad not to worry about those other things. As far as the free test, I will get that tested. I do have symptoms of low test, the main one being libido. It's never been particularly high, but definitely went down the toilet never to return when I went on the BC pill for 2 years (and that was 5 years ago).