Chapter 36: Thyroid System Dysfunction

Thomas W Hilgers

Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disease · Autoimmune Conditions

Chapter 36: Thyroid System Dysfunction

Hilgers TW

The Medical and Surgical Practice of NaProTECHNOLOGY, 453-466, 2004

RRM Academy Synopsis

Symptoms of thyroid system dysfunction improved in patients given T3

A NaProTECHNOLOGY textbook chapter reports that average body temperature rose in 82 patients given T3 for thyroid system dysfunction (TSD). The chapter reports improved symptoms in 18 patients with symptom lists and renames Wilson's syndrome as TSD. The author states that TSD appears to be related to chronic stress.

Key Findings

The chapter describes TSD as a condition with many symptoms of abnormal thyroid function and usually normal standard tests, diagnosed from body temperatures, a symptom list and a hormone ratio.
In the 82 patients treated with sustained-release triiodothyronine (T3), average body temperature rose significantly on all five days measured before ovulation and on one of five days measured after it.
Pulse rate rose significantly during treatment, and the symptom complex improved significantly in 18 patients who had A-Z Symptom Check Lists recorded before and during treatment.
Most of the 82 patients reported side effects, most commonly dull headache. The chapter describes them as mostly temporary or dose related and reports that medication was discontinued in some cases.
The author reports an apparent association of the approach with more pregnancies in the infertility program and with better treatment of premenstrual symptoms.

RRM Context

Restorative reproductive medicine treats the menstrual cycle as clinical evidence. The chapter applies that idea to the thyroid. Body temperature rises after ovulation as progesterone increases, so NaProTECHNOLOGY reads the two phases separately. A study the chapter cites found higher core temperature in the luteal phase than in the follicular phase. The chapter says the original Wilson's syndrome work did not adequately account for this shift. Body literacy, meaning the patient's own record, shapes the clinical question, and the aim is finding the cause before treatment begins.

Our editorial summary of this paper, not the article's abstract.

Abstract

Both overt and subclinical thyroid dysfunction are recognized in NaProTECHNOLOGY as significant causes of cycle-level reproductive abnormalities -- including oligomenorrhea, anovulation, luteal phase deficiency, heavy bleeding, and recurrent early pregnancy loss -- detectable through CrMS charting before standard screening would prompt thyroid evaluation. The chapter advocates comprehensive thyroid assessment (TSH, free T4, free T3, and thyroid antibodies) with fertility-optimized reference thresholds in women presenting with cycle disorders or infertility, followed by reassessment of CrMS patterns and hormone profiles after thyroid correction to identify and treat any residual follicular or luteal phase defects.

Topics

Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disease › Autoimmune Conditions › Autoimmune Thyroid Disease · Diagnostics › Hormone Testing › Serum Panels · Reproductive Endocrinology › Thyroid and Metabolic Function › Thyroid Disorders

Thomas W Hilgers

Tom Hilgers, T Hilgers

Hilgers et al. 2004, Hilgers 2004

Chapter 36: Thyroid System Dysfunction

Symptoms of thyroid system dysfunction improved in patients given T3

Key Findings

RRM Context

Abstract

Topics

By this author

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