[jbuck75]

#1017850

I was diagnosed with GD in March. Started taking methimazole mid April. Had a rash I believe was from the med. GP thought it was just a viral rash but never had it before meds. 4 weeks ago loss my sense of taste. Anyone else on this med lose taste? I have lost some weight during this time which is good but it really stinks not being able to taste or enjoy any foods! Endo said he can switch me from meth to ptu but higher liver toxicity. Hubby is worried. I’m confused on what to do. Others say try the ptu and see how I do on it. Only be taking 100mg ptu a day. What does everyone think? Is the dose small enough to not worry so much about liver problems? Would u do it to see if your taste would come back? Don’t wanna do RAI as I have 2 children (6&. Don’t like the idea of staying away from them for 5 days! ” title=”Sad” />

[Kimberly]

#1061300

Hello – This is a decision that needs to be made between you and your doctor. Loss of taste is actually listed as a potential adverse reaction for *both* methimazole and PTU, so it’s not guaranteed that you will get relief from making the switch. In fact, when PTU was discovered, researchers were actually trying to create a substance that altered taste!

In terms of liver complications, the actual number of deaths is very low – less than one per year since the FDA has been keeping track back in the 1960s. However, this *is* something to be aware of…and methimazole has a safer track record than PTU when it comes to liver complications.

[jansm]

#1061301

I, too, had a rash from methimazole. It and the itching were so severe that I was switched to ptu. I do remember it altering my sense of taste. After taking ptu for only a couple of months, my liver function did begin to show signs of effect. It had already been determined I was heading for complete surgical removal of my thyroid. So, I did not remain on ptu for much longer after that. Unfortunately, I do not remember my dosage of ptu.
I can understand the concerns of being able to care for your children. However, the time of recovery from treatment is brief, compared to a lifetime of not feeling well or being able to enjoy all aspects of your life and theirs.
I agree that any decisions regarding prescriptions and treatment need to be made with your physician. Good luck!

[snelsen]

#1061302

Hi, I was on PTU. My liver studies became a little elevated, but not to a concerning level. I did not enjoy food very much while on the drug much, but my taste was not altered enough to be a problem. This may because I had a plan at the very beginning, and that was to take ATD’s and beta blockers as short a time as possible, and as soon as my thyroid labs were more toward normal, to have a thyroidectomy. So I knew anything I did was short term. After I became a person again ( I was REALLY hyper, with the usual weight loss, crazy, anxiety, tremor, rapid heart rate and all the other stuff we read about.) I prepped for the surgery, took potassium iodide drops approximately 10 days before the surgery. This reduces the vasularity of the thyroid gland in preparation for surgery. After my surgery, I was fine for many years, then got a little hypo, and began on Synthroid. At the time I had the surgery the believe was to leave a small amount of thyroid gland, in the hopes that just the right amount of hormone would be made for an individual, thus eliminted the need to take thyroid hormone. I believe the practice now, in both RAI and surgery, is to destroy the thyroid gland production, then manage thyroid hormone by the dose of medicine we take. Good questions to check in with your endo about. I imagine he/she is going to watch the TREND of your LFT’S (liver function tests) very carefully. Ask when he/she know to be concerned.
Shirley

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