Thyroid & IGF-1 Bloos test results

[coz]

I just received my blood test results back, and am looking for some help to interpret the results;

IGF-1 95.7 ng/ml
Free T3 3.61 pg/ml (1.9 - 5.1)
Free T4 2.48 ng/dl (0.93 - 1.7)
TSH 0.54 uU/ml (0.27 - 4.2)

CEA 3.9 ng.ml (0 - 4.6)
AFP 3.3 ng/ml (0 - 7)

Is Free T4 too high ? Is IGF-1 too low ?

Any comments appreciated.

 

[stat1951]

IGF-1 does seem too low, actually quite a bit... but then I am basing that on the reference ranges that my Lab uses.

What is the reference range for IGF-1 for your Lab?

Sorry, but not up to date on the Thyroid issues.


Larry

 

[coz]

Thanks Larry,

The reference range for IGF-1 is;

31-35yr 115-307 ng/ml

So with a value of 95.7 I'm definately below normal. Would this make me a cantidate for HGH replacement ? What kind of doses are normal replacement ?

Can anyone interperate my Tyhroid results & if there are any issues ?

Appreciated, Thanks

 

[mranak]

Can anyone interperate my Tyhroid results & if there are any issues ?

T4 gets converted to T3. T3 (triiodothyronine) is the active thyroid hormone, so I believe tht free t3 levels matter more than free t4 levels.

You certainly aren't hypothyroid.

 

[coz]

Thanks mranak,

What about TSH - is the value there ok being on the lower end of the range ?

Any comments about IGF-1 levels ?

 

[cpeil2]

Thanks mranak,

What about TSH - is the value there ok being on the lower end of the range ?

Any comments about IGF-1 levels ?

A lower value is better, within limits. Your thyroid no's look great. IGF agree with Larry - your IGF-1 is kind of low. How old are you?

What are CEA and AFP?

 

[HeadDoc]

low hGH may be related to lack of sleep, lack of exercise, stress (chronic), nutrition ( hyperglycemia or elevated free fatty acids). Obesity, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can decrease hGH. Hormones that decrease hGH: exogenous hGH, glucocorticoids, and progesterone.

Testing for growth hormone deficiency involves IGF-1 and IGFBP3. Many docs will only use the IGF-1. The later is a transporter molecule for IGF-1. The ratio of IGF-1 to IGFBP3 is used to determine the need for hGH or as an indication of cancer, hyperthyroidism, nephritis, and hepatitis. Conditions that raise IFGBP3 include elevated estrogens.

Given that the contraindicators are eliminated, you would probably started at .5 IU and then over a weeks or more increased to 1IU.

hGH works well with diets rich in protein and healthy fats. Intense exercise, to tolerance, should be encouraged. Carbs should be in the mid to low glycemic range. The reduces the possibility of adult on-set diabetes. Periodic serum glucose tests should be performed.

Despite blood work, most insurance companies will not pay for adult onset growth hormone deficiency. So while your doc may issue a script, you will probably end up carrying the cost. There are many overlap benefits of TRT with hGH replacement. So if you are doing well on TRT you might want to stick to TRT alone. TRT will elevate gh in the body.--perhaps by 10%.

ONe final clarification. GH has a very short half life in body-- a few minutes. However, when it hits the liver, it produces IGF-1 which lasts for 12 or more hours. So IGF-1 rather than gh is monitored. The pituitary releases gh in a few pulses throughout the day.

 

[coz]

Thanks for the great reply Headdoc ! Extremely helpful

low hGH may be related to lack of sleep, lack of exercise, stress (chronic), nutrition ( hyperglycemia or elevated free fatty acids). Obesity, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can decrease hGH. Hormones that decrease hGH: exogenous hGH, glucocorticoids, and progesterone.

Testing for growth hormone deficiency involves IGF-1 and IGFBP3. Many docs will only use the IGF-1. The later is a transporter molecule for IGF-1. The ratio of IGF-1 to IGFBP3 is used to determine the need for hGH or as an indication of cancer, hyperthyroidism, nephritis, and hepatitis. Conditions that raise IFGBP3 include elevated estrogens.

Given that the contraindicators are eliminated, you would probably started at .5 IU and then over a weeks or more increased to 1IU.

I will discuss the results with my endo & see if he is willing to include that with my HRT.

ONe final clarification. GH has a very short half life in body-- a few minutes. However, when it hits the liver, it produces IGF-1 which lasts for 12 or more hours. So IGF-1 rather than gh is monitored. The pituitary releases gh in a few pulses throughout the day.

So how long till levels would return to normal (baseline) after an injection - is it a matter of a day or 2 ? Or will it stay slightly elevated over normal for longer ?

Thanks

 

[HeadDoc]

hgh must be dosed daily. It has been suggested, without data however, that hGH taken at night will result more in fat reduction and taken in the AM will have more of an effect on mass development.

 

[coz]

Thanks Headdoc, Understand it should be a daily thing. I was more asking how long it would take to be completely out of your system (ie have your levels drop back to baseline). Like test cyp is a few weeks.


Cepil2 - I'm 33. CEA is a marker for colon tumors/cancer, and AFP is same for liver. They are like PSA is for prostate. You should check these values before you start GH therapy - as GH will also cause tumors/cancer to grow.

 

[mranak]

GH has a very short half life in body-- a few minutes. However, when it hits the liver, it produces IGF-1 which lasts for 12 or more hours. So IGF-1 rather than gh is monitored. The pituitary releases gh in a few pulses throughout the day.

It sure does cost a lot for something is doesn't last long, doesn't it?

Seriously, the whole GH, IGF-1 thing is something that I have long not understand. The information you provided helps me though, so thank you.

Any idea why we seem to prefer to supplement with GH instead of IGF-1?

 

[HeadDoc]

the IGF-1 is even more expensive and not readily available. Further, what the gh does is to set off a temporary release of IGF-1 for 12 to 15 (?) hrs. Now one of the nice things about the gh is that it is helping with growth and repair generically--it's to some extent revitalizing the body systems. This is more pervasive than trt. I've been on for over a year and a few things I've noted: hemorroids are no longer a problem, slight improvement in eye sight, deeper sleep (no need for more than 5-6 hours), hairs on my abdomin are not grey any longer, skin does not tear as easily, slight mesotherapy-like response to fat around abdomin. These are effects that I don't believe could be attributed to the other hormones I take.

I'm not sure how long it would take to return the IGF-1 levels to pretreatment. I do know that the early bloodwork on 2 iu's daily taken in the AM( or 24 hours after the last shot) were in the 250 to 275 range). An the AM bloodwork taken when I shifted to PM shot came in around 350 (this was the target). I would have to extrapolate from that. 3 days?

 

[coz]

Great, thanks headdoc

 

[zaarel2]

What are the theories of better fat loss with nighttime injects? I have read often that night time injects are not optimal as they tend to surpress ones own natural release of gh during sleep. I am very intersted in this as fat loss along with improved sleep are my primary goals from hgh treatment.

 

[HeadDoc]

What are the theories of better fat loss with nighttime injects? I have read often that night time injects are not optimal as they tend to surpress ones own natural release of gh during sleep. I am very intersted in this as fat loss along with improved sleep are my primary goals from hgh treatment.

there is not conclusive evidence on this point respecting the time of day when hGH is taken. The body can be quite catabolic during sleep and perhaps this is why. Many take a protein drink prior to sleep to offset possible muscle loss. While this is probably true to some extent--it's probably more of a concern to male worrying the they will lose one iota of muscle they have gained.