In Hashimoto's, the inflammation is caused by our white blood cells attacking our own thyroid gland. This leads to a reduction in thyroid hormone levels and an underactive thyroid gland, which can result in symptoms including -
- Fatigue
- Joint pain and stiffness
- Constipation
- Weight gain and/or loss
- Depression and/or anxiety (hypothyroidism)
- Muscle aches, cramps, weakness, tenderness
- Skin problems
- Infertility
- Menstrual problems
& much more.
Know in detail about all these symptoms of Hashimoto's disease in this blog post.
How is Hashimoto's disease diagnosed?
The thyroid gland is a very complex organ. So, any dysfunction in the gland whether or not due to an autoimmune response is complicated to diagnose. Complicated, in the sense, the tests are simple but it is important to take the right tests to find the problems. - Functional Medicine Doctor Miami
Unlike taking just a regular thyroid test, TSH, many parameters are to be considered and tested.
Blood works for Hashimoto's disease diagnosis may include testing for thyroid functioning as well as thyroid antibodies.
A thyroid antibodies test is highly important to diagnose autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto's or Grave's disease. With just a Thyroid hormone test, these autoimmune problems are often missed.
One of the reasons that a thyroid antibody test is so important is because it can often be detected earlier than changes in hormones.
The blood works include testing for -
- TSH levels
- T4 levels
- T3 levels
- Reverse T3 levels
- Thyroglobulin antibodies
- TPO antibodies
Related Read - What Thyroid Tests To Ask For?
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