Hypothyroidism in toddlers **title edited by MNHQ**

[missy111]

Anyone any experience of this? LB's blood test came back with TSH of 6.7 (normal 0.3-6) so being retested to double check

Hypothyroidism...
Hyper i assume like adults would be low tsh under the 0.3.

Just checked def says TSH 6.7. Doc said it was high so assumed hyper? Am I wrong?

Just consulted Dr Google, and I'm wrong, sorry. Looks like its hypothyroidism.

Was this a newborn test?
Or does he have constipation etc

He's 18 months. Having issues with allergies and variable stools (in one day can have dehydrated pellets,'normal' and very loose) so was part of a wider screening to see if anything showed up

Anyone?

Hi missy, i know a little bit about it as we've gine through similar. Have you also got T4 results?

My DS has got elevated TSH levels, similar to yours, which have come out twice now with a 6 month gap. But his T4 levels are normal. The way I have understood it is that he has enough thyroxine (shown by T4 levels), which means it's not the cause of the problem we were referred for, but that his thyroid is having to work quite hard to produce that level of T4.

His T4 is also normal. Is it just a case of watch and see then?
Thanks for replying, it's such a minefield!

Yes. In an adult, they think that high TSH and normal T4 suggests a predisposition to hypothyroidism in later life, but from what I can tell, in children the TSH may just revert to normal range over a few years. So we are in a cycle of periodic blood tests just to keep an eye on it.

I found a journal article that discusses it here. The pattern of high TSH and normal T4 is called subclinical hypothyroidism.

Thanks for that. More useful than the Drs explanation!