[Anonymous]

#1050245

My understanding of the differences between the 2 are:

PTU prevents the thyroid from taking up iodine. Tapazole allows the iodine uptake, but prevents the thyroid from using the iodine (Casey posted this information a couple of days ago.)

My endo said that PTU is less likely to cross the placenta, so if you plan to get pregnant at any time in the near future, consider this (talk to your doctor about it).

I don’t know which has more/harsher side effects. I felt kind of queasy/headachey when I first started on Tapazole, but that went away after a week. I was also itchy while I was on it.

I’ve heard the 30% success rate. Factors that contribute to success are mild case and (young) age. So your chances might be better (I think you said in your other note that you’ll be taking 20mgs. of Tapazole — I don’t think that’s a really high dose. I started on 10 mgs./day, got hypo quickly, went down to 5 mgs. after around 4 months, and went off altogether a month ago because I was becoming more hypo even on the low dose. So maybe this will all be over soon?)

I don’t know about whether either is better in controlling eye problems. My understanding is that the eye symptoms are not well understood, prevented or controlled. I think about half of Grave’s patients end up with eye symptoms, and a lot of people get eye symptoms without ever developing Grave’s. I think it’s relatively rare to have the seriously bulging eyes, although you read a lot about it on the board here (people with minor problems probably don’t feel the need to post messages.) Don’t get freaked out about the eye stuff you read here, just keep it in the back of your mind, and wish these people the best. If I were you, I’d go to an ophthomologist just to get a check-up/baseline reading. If your eyes feel dry, try artificial tears (not the kind containing chemicals that get the red out)

[Anonymous]

#1148791

I started on carbimazole (I believe is the same as tapazole) after diagnosis but was put on PTU when I got pregnant. I think carbimazole is cheaper. After changing to PTU my hair started falling out. I don’t know if this is drug-related side effect, a result of falling thyroid hormone levels or because I miscarried. Might be worth asking if hair loss is a side effect of PTU as it is so annoying. Penny

[Anonymous]

#1148792

I had a miscarriage too your hair will fall out my sister’s did too and she doesnot have graves . I am wanting to get pregant again bot worried about PTU and being pregant . How long have you been on it and are you planning on getting pregant again?

[Anonymous]

#1148793

For betterinformation you should probably ask your doctor, but here goes:

PTU and Tapazole are both ATDs, but Tapazole is newer and sometiems considered more potent. PTU is safer for pregnant women than Tapazole, based on how it travels thought the blood stream, Tapazole is a harsher drug. different peopel can have different reactions and responses to both medications. I had digestive problems from both, but my symptoms were far worse when I was on PTU and kicked in within the first 24 hours. With Tapazole it took longer for the stomach irritation to set in, and although uncomfortable, it was much better than when I took PTU.

Having tried both medications, I’ve had completely different doses for the same efficacy. The endo covering for mine while mine was on vacation, put me on PTU briefly because of the stomach problems I had from Tapazole. Unfortunately, since I am proine to digestive reactiosn in medication (not everyone is) I had a far worse reaction to the higher-dosed PTU than to Taspazole. An interesting difference in the doseage supported my doctor’s belief that Tapazole is stronger and possibly more effective. 30 mg of Tapazole (3-10 mg tablets taken at once) translated into 300 mg of PTU (6-50 mg, tablets, spaced out through the day only because of the number of pills).

Hope this helps some, but please consult your doctor for specific information.

[Anonymous]

#1148794

Essentially, PTU and Tapazole are two different chemicals which have the ability to interfere with the thyroid’s absorption of iodine. By controlling the amount of the drug, doctors can usually control the action of the thyroid. Think of them as chemical blocks to thyroid hormone production.

Since they are different chemicals, however, they act in slightly different ways. And there are medical reasons why doctors will prescribe one over the other.

For example, PTU only comes in one pill size (something like 50 mg), so we have to take more of them at one time. Also, PTU does not last long in the body, and therefore, we have to take the pills several times a day, trying to space them approximately 8 hours apart, for maximum effectiveness. Both of these aspects can be annoying to the patient. But because of this, the dose of PTU can be fine-tuned. Also, PTU crosses into mother’s milk less than Tapazole, and crosses the placental barrier less than Tapazole. It apparently also interferes more with the peripheral transformation of T4 into T3 in other parts of the body, so in some patients it might result in better control of the hyper symptoms.

Tapazole, on the other hand, is a simple one-pill-a-day (for the most part) medication, so it is much simpler to use.

There are undoubtedly other reasons for prescribing one over the other that I don’t know about. But essentially they both achieve the same thing (control over the production of thyroid hormone), and they both have roughly the same side effect issues.

Bobbi — NGDF Asst. Online Facilitator

[Author]

Posts