One sweet Wednesday morning...

As a student it is a part of our everyday life in school to study and listen to our teachers. As all we know after several hours of discussion. We should always expect for a TEST!, it is a must now a days (i think so hehe). Maybe some of you are feeling nervous whenever the teacher announced that there would be a test for the next 5 or 10 minutes.

So, the question is "Is a test really important?". The answer is YES! Because through various tests we could evaluate ourselves whether we are performing well at the class. Just like on our body we need to undergo on different tests to know if our body is functioning well.

"Thyroid hormone test". My previous post was about Thyroid hormone. Now let me discuss to you what is a Thyroid hormone test is, thyroid hormone tests are tests for the blood that check how well the thyroid gland is working. Maybe you are wondering why it is done? 

Thyroid hormone test are done to:

• To screen newborns to find out if the thyroid gland function is normal.
• To find out what is causing an abnormal thyroid stimulating hormone test.
• To check how well the treatment of thyroid disease is working.

Thyroid hormone test include:

• T3 test, This test is done to check your thyroid function. Thyroid function is complex and depends on the action of many different hormones, including thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and T4. Sometimes it can be useful to measure both T3 and T4 when looking at thyroid function. The T3 test can measure both the T3 that is attached to proteins and floating free in the blood. The range for normal values is 100 to 200 ng/dL (nanograms per deciliter).

 

          Drugs that can increase T3 measurements include:

    

         - Birth control pills
         - Clofibrate
         - Estrogens
         - Methadone

         Drugs that can decrease T3 measurements include:

         - Anabolic steroids
         - Androgens
         - Antithyroid drugs (for example, propylthiouracil and methimazole)

•  T4 test, This test measures the amount of thyroxine, or T4, in your blood. T4 levels are important, because T4 increases numerous enzymes that produce energy for the body. T4 test is primarily ordered in response to an abnormal TSH test result. Sometimes the T4 will be ordered along with a TSH to give the doctor a more complete evaluation of the adequacy of the thyroid hormone feedback system. These tests are usually ordered when a patient has symptoms of hyper- or hypothyroidism. Normal range is: 4.5 to 11.2 mcg/dL (micrograms per deciliter).

          Drugs that can increase T3 measurements include:

    

         - Estrogens
         - Amiodarone
         - Estrogens
         - Birth control pills

         Drugs that can decrease T3 measurements include:

         - Androgens
         - Propylthiouracil
         - Propranolol

• TSH -test. often the test of choice for evaluating thyroid function and/or symptoms of hyper- or hypothyroidism.

                   

          TSH testing is used to:  

                               

          - screen newborns for an underactive thyroid,

          - monitor thyroid replacement therapy in people with hypothyroidism

                     

Below is a video wherein Dr. Tim D.C Lind describes the proper testing for thyroid conditions:

Book references:
Clinical Chemistry: Principles, Procedures, Correlations by Bishop
Clinical Chemistry: A Fundamental Textbook by Donald F. Calbreath

Image source:
http://bruteforcestudyguide.com


Video source:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMWuboBRxFw