I just posted this thread yesterday and realized I should put it here for those of you following thyroid info:
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Hi Ladies,
I just saw this response from a doctor on the SIRM site (
SIRM) and I thought it was a good concise summary of the connection btwn hypothyroidism/ATAs/IF. I know a lot of questions have come up about hypothyroidism and IF and I thought this would be helpful:
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Positive ATA is common with hypothyroidism. Please read below:
IMMUNOLOGIG IMPLANTATION FAILURE AND THYROID AUTOANTIBODIES.
About 50% of women who have autoantibodies to their own thyroid tissues (antithyroglobulin and/or antimicrosomal antibodies) regardless of whether or not there are clinical signs or symptoms of reduced thyroid hormone activity (hypothyroidism) have activated Natural Killer cells (NKa+ and/or activated T-cells in their blood. Such women often present with reproductive failure manifesting as infertility, recurrent IUI and IVF failure or repeated pregnancy loss. The antithyroid antibodies (antimicrosomal and/or antithyroglobulin antibodies) do not cause the problem. They act as markers pointing to an underlying immunologic implantation problem that occurs when NKa or T-cell activation is present. . Here, as soon as the embryo starts to burrow into the uterine wall, "toxins" are produced (locally) that impair implantation. In some cases, the pregnancy is lost before a blood test can detect it, while in other cases a miscarriage occurs. [Some pregnancies escape the "toxic gauntlet" and proceed.
One of the most significant hints that a non symptomatic woman might have antithyroid antibodies is a family history of hypothyroidism (under performance of the thyroid gland requiring thyroid hormone therapy).
We were among the first to demonstrate that women who have reproductive failure associated with antithyroid antibodies and NKa+/T-cell activation can have successful IVF outcomes following administration of intravenous gammaglobulin (IVIG) . Women who are antithyroid antibody positive who do NOT have NKa+ and or T-cell activation do not require or benefit from IVIG therapy.
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