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  • Anonymous
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    Post count: 93172

    Hi, Charlene.

    Your question about waiting for the RAI is one of those things that we probably cannot answer for you — it has to do with the medical judgment of your doctor. It takes a month or so on the antithyroid drugs for them to “work” well, and it sounds like your doctor may be trying to get your blood levels of thyroid hormone down into a safer range. But that is a guess. You will have to go off the antithyroid drugs completely a few days, or a week, before the RAI (because they would interfere with the absorption of the radioactive iodine as well), and then, approximately one week after RAI we become much more hyper than “normal”, due to the damage it does to the thyroid cells. These cells not only make hormone, but they also store it. So those stores get released as the cells begin to die. So if your current hormone levels are higher than your doctor feels comfortable with, he/she may be trying to get them down, so that when they go yet again higher after RAI, they are not at a dangerous point.

    Waiting at least a month between visits is absolutely necessary, because our pituitary response to thyroid hormone levels (which is how the doctor follows the effectiveness of the treatment) lags a bit — it isn’t an instantaneous response. I know how impatient you feel, but it isn’t something that the doctor has the ability to “rush”.

    I’d recommend that you not wait for a doctor to refer you to an optho. ASK for a referral. Even if the bulging you perceive in your left eye is something simple like lid retraction, we recommend here that you at least get a base-line exam from an ophthomologist, so that he/she can start tracking any changes that might occur with your eyes.

    The swelling isn’t a common symptom that I know anything about. Since your doctor doesn’t think it is directly related, you might want to ask him to suggest what type of doctor might be able to give you some better information. ; )

    I hope this helps, and wishing you good luck,
    Bobbi
    Asst. On-Line Facilitator

    Anonymous
    Participant
    Post count: 93172

    Fluid retention and swelling of my legs, ankles and feet was especially bad when I was hyper, and still is a problem at times. My endocrinologist and ophthalmologist both have told me it is Graves’ related but the reasons are not entirely understood.

    Dianne W

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