savebabe
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9847
posted
Interesting....My thyroid went hypo while taking levaquin. I also thought there may be a connection.
Posts: 1603 | From ny | Registered: Aug 2006
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daise
Unregistered
posted
Howdy Cavey,
Apparently Cipro affects those with hypothyroidism who take levothyroxine (thyroid hormone replacement,) according to the study.
The thing is, this study was conducted in 2005. It's still not reflected in the pharmacy literature for patients. Or maybe the study wasn't duplicated and that's why.
It's thought that when Cipro and thyroid replacement hormone (Levoxyl, Synthroid, etc.) are taken together, there is an absorption problem of thyroid hormone.
Yet taken 6 hours apart, thyroid hormones were not affected. But what about Lymies who take it long term?
Your muscles and tendons suffered before when you took Cipro. Did you stop taking Cipro three months ago? And do you take thyroid hormone replacement?
That could very well explain why your muscles and tendons suffered: they lacked thyroid hormone, due to the interference from Cipro.
Mary--who is not a doctor, but a good patient advocate for hypothyroidism--cautions: "And if you have to take the antibiotic for a lengthy period, you should discuss the potential impact on your thyroid with your doctor, and possibly request period thyroid testing to ensure that your thyroid treatment is not affected."
Muscle aches are a symptom of being low in thyroid hormone: hypothyroidism.
Thyroid hormone (T4 and T3) affects every cell in the body from the tip of the head clear down to the big, right toe.
It's the gas pedal for our energy. Thyroid hormones are the little logs for our fire: when T4 locks into a cell, converting to T3, BOOM! Acceleration.
If you take Cipro, but you don't take thyroid hormone, then, well, does Cipro affect thyroid hormone already in the body--made by the thyroid?
I don't believe the study mentioned that.
Conventional medicine and research says, basically, that once thyroid hormone is set loose in the body by the thyroid gland, or is absorbed into the body NOTHING stops it from doing its job
However, that's a big bone of contention in the alternative hypothyroidism field.
Not that much seems to be known about hypothyroidism, by the bloggers here--some do know, yes.
Hey everybody: Lyme often attacks the thyroid. If it does, at first, typically we get hyper thyroid(thyroid gland in our necks makes too much thyroid hormone) and after a time our thyroid gland is so pooped and diseased that it makes too little thyroid hormone and we become hypothyroid (low in thyroid hormone.)
We must be optimized in thyroid in order to heal every cell of Lyme etc.
In the general population this is so common, it's rediculous. Being low in thyroid hormone CAUSES infection to set in: it's the welcome mat. To rid ourselves of infection we need adequate (balanced, optimized) thyroid hormone.
When we lack it, we must replace it.
There are herbs and supplements that folks in the general population can take for slight hypothyroidism.
But we with Lyme can't fool around. If we need prescribed thyroid hormone replacement, well then, we need it, to help fight Lyme infection. For we Lymies ... especially so!
From most any doc, ask for blood tests for TSH, FT4 (Free T4) and FT3 (Free T3.) The testing range for TSH most labs used is outdated by about 4 years.
Currently if the THS is more than 3, THAT IS DIAGNOSABLE ACCORDING TO THE ENDOCRINOLOGISTS NATIONAL, PROFFESIONAL ORGANIZATION. But conventional docs, of course, and most labs will ignore that.
Once again, we with Lyme have to fight! Because we with Lyme must have balanced thyroid hormone if we are to recover from Lyme, etc.
Typically, T4 is prescribed. Most of the general population does much better with the addition of T3, along with T4. T3 first goes straight to your head. AWESOME!
T3 is found in Armour Thyroid (along with T4) or Cytomel (pure T3.) Both should be compounded for time release, as too much T3 will give you symtoms of being hyperthyroid.
A good book that may be at your library: Living Well With Hypothyroidism, 2005 Edition, by Mary J. Shomon.
Also, Mary has an excellent search website at www.thyroid-info.com. That also ties-in with her about.com site, which is where the above article comes from.
I'm fishing for possible trouble, here, Cavey. What do you think?
It's interesting that you went hypothyroid in conjuction with taking Levaquin.
I haven't found a study, although, I didn't by any means do a thorough search.
Mary cautions: "Note: Interestingly, there are also anecdotal reports -- including my own -- of bad reactions to other fluoroquinolone antibiotics. Read about my own experience getting what's known as "floxed," in When Drug Side Effects Get Out Of Hand: Side Effects of Quinolone Antibiotics Like Tequin (Gatifloxacin) Can Be Serious."
Yet Mary's story and other Internet info that was easy to get doesn't specifically mention Levaquin as affecting absorption of thyroid hormone replacement.
And your concern of Levaquin possibly affecting your body's own thyroid hormone, isn't mentioned--but of course, that's alternative thinking.
Has Levaquin been studied as far as affecting absorption of thyroid hormone? Especially when taken for months?
Having Lyme, etc., for a l o n g time, especially, can wear down your thyroid. That's general with any chronic disease. This can bring, among a whole slew of signs and symptoms, muscle aches.
Mary writes: "Common symptoms include fatigue, weight gain, constipation, fuzzy thinking, low blood pressure, fluid retention, depression, body pain, slow reflexes, and much more. A more detailed list of symptoms and risks is featured in the Hypothyroidism Risks/Symptoms Checklist."
For the checklist articles, go to: www.thyroid.about.com, and see the menu on the left, under "Essentials," second from the top: "Symptoms Of Thyroid Disease."
It can cause a myriad of symptoms, besides the few listed above: feeling cold when others do not, brain fog, sleep apnea, snoring, high or low blood pressure, DIGESTIVE TROUBLE, constipation, menstrual irregularities, carpel tunnel, muscle aches, hair loss at the crown (more hair in the sink or drain,) dry skin, eyebrows that have thinned at the outer parts, INFECTIONS and more.
Some alternative docs treat hypothyroidism, beyond the blood tests, when they suspect it by your signs and symptoms.
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