[CMoore416]

#1058808

Hi everyone

It’s been awhile since I’ve been here. I had Graves for many years. In 2005 had uptake scan and it was 91% but no nodules. Went on PTU and went off in Oct 2010 and had a negative result on antibodies test. Thyroid levels have all been in Normal since (on lower side of normal averaging around .7) in June 2011 I started having many many pvcs a day and heart checked out fine as did thyroid levels. I have been under extreme stress and fear dealing with the . A month ago I started to have a pain in the front of My neck. It has continued varying from none to some and also a feeling of fullness or tightness in the area of the thyroid. Sometimes the pain is higher. So my Dr ordered another scan which isn’t scheduled yet. I’m nervous that something could be wrong again but hoping for continued thyroid success.

[clarinette]

#1170117

Hi CMoore,

Have you had your scan yet? I hope you get good news soon, if you haven’t already. How is your neck feeling today?

My neck often feels very tender too and throbs a lot, especially in the early morning, and I frequently have pain in my left ear as well, although I’m not sure if this has something to do with the thyroid, or if it’s just a coincidence.

I’ve had Graves for just over two years and I’m a new girl on this wonderful forum. Some of the facilitators have replied to my posts with some very interesting and helpful insights and comments. However, I’m not American, I’ve lived in France for most of my life (since 1980) and I’m having trouble understanding some of the jargon. I’d like to understand more about your treatment and syptoms, and at the risk of sounding really dumb, could you tell me please, what is PTU? What are pvcs? And what is an uptake scan? Treatment seems to be very different over here and all these are things I’ve never heard of….

[Kimberly]

#1170118

clarinette wrote:

what is PTU? What are pvcs? And what is an uptake scan? Treatment seems to be very different over here and all these are things I’ve never heard of….

Hello – You will get used to the jargon here in no time!

PTU – Propylthiouracil, one of two Anti-Thyroid Drugs that are prescribed in the U.S.. The other drug, Tapazole (generic methimazole) is generally preferred to PTU, because it has a track record of fewer liver complications.

Uptake Scan – Involves ingesting a small amount of radioactive iodine to see how the iodine is concentrated in the thyroid gland. This is primarily used if a patient is definitely hypER, but the antibody tests aren’t conclusive. This can help determine if hyperthyroidism is due to thyroiditis or an overactive nodule.

PVCs – Premature ventricular contractions, a heart complication that is occasionally experienced by Graves’ patients, particularly when hypER or hypO.

Hope this helps!

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