[kw4blessings]

#1060463

Hi all. I’m new here and hoping to find answers to some of the questions I have regarding my daughter (almost 8yo). I recently took her to the pediatrician in order to hopefully get a second opinion on what is going on with her eyes. Her left eye starting turning out last fall, all of a sudden (strabismus). We saw an ophthalmologist who diagnosed her with slight near-sightedness and strabismus and hoped the new glasses would pull her eye in. The glasses did help some, for a short time, but the eye turn (intermittent exotropia) is becoming worse and happens sometimes in her right eye as well.

So, I wanted my ped’s opinion, as the research I had done kept telling me that stabismus occurring suddenly, after a child is 6 or 7, can indicate a more serious problem. The ped noticed that my dd’s thyroid was enlarged, which I had not noticed before, but it is obvious once you take a good look at it. She ordered blood work (T4 and TSH, I believe). They called me back today to say that the tests came back normal. I am going to pick up the paper this afternoon so I can have the exact numbers.

My concern is that she does have a lot of hyperthyroid symptoms that seem to paint a picture of, “Oh, THAT’s why she’s like she is.”

She has always been hyperactive, unfocused, sweats excessively at the drop of a hat, fast heartbeat, higher than normal body temperature. She gets irritated often (especially lately) at things that do not irritate the average person, she is scared of many things, even going to the bathroom by herself. She’s overly emotional and panics often. Sometimes it takes her hours to fall asleep even though she complains of being tired during the day oftentimes. She eats a normal amount at meals, but often says she is hungry soon after and she’s tall and thin. (No weight loss, but slow gain). She complains of itchy skin often, as well, and lays in bed saying, “I just CAN’T relax, my body just wants to move!” This is 10-11pm!

School can also be a struggle. She seems to be “on” one day and totally “off” the next (can’t remember simple math problems).

Also, my sister was diagnosed with Graves at age 15. She is 25 now and went through RAI at age 17. She takes Synthroid (sp?).

I feel the need to look into this further. We’ve been searching for answers for this dd for years. We’ve just assumed she was ADHD and had a lot of other quirks. But, the symptoms here seem to line up so well.

Any suggestions as to where I can go from here? Should I ask the ped to order different blood tests? Go to a ped. endocrinologist? Any help would be greatly appreciated. We want to help our sweet girl (she is sweet and excessively bright! Didn’t want to paint an all bad picture of our girlie!). Thanks so much in advance!

[Kimberly]

#1182777

Hello – So sorry that your little one is not feeling well! For starters, it can be helpful to get a copy of the labs so you can see for yourself where your daughter’s levels are compared to the “normal” range for that lab. There are also blood tests that check for Graves’ antibodies (TRAb or TSI).

This definitely deserves a closer look, especially with your daughter’s eye issues and the existing family history of Graves’. A pediatric endo might be able to provide better guidance. Here are a couple of links that will hopefully be helpful:

(Note on links: if you click directly on the following link, you will need to use your browser’s “back” button to return to the boards after viewing, or you will have to log back in to the forum. As an alternative, you can right-click the link and open it in a new tab or new window).

Pediatric Endocrine Society:
https://www.pedsendo.org/patients_families/find_a_doctor/index.cfm

American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists:
https://www.aace.com/resources/find-an-endocrinologist

To learn more about children & Graves’ in general, there are presentations on our YouTube channel from Dr. Scott Rivkees and Dr. Michael Gottschalk:

https://www.youtube.com/user/GravesAndThyroid/videos

Also, I don’t know where you are located, but the GDATF has a seminar coming up in November in Philadelphia on children & Graves’:

http://www.eventbrite.com/e/graves-disease-in-children-and-adolescents-free-seminar-for-parents-tickets-11409448969?aff=es2&rank=1

Hoping that you can get some answers!

[Author]

Posts