Levothyroxine Q&A

If You Are a Newly Hypothyroid Patient, What Should You Do?

If you are a new thyroid patient who is being prescribed levothyroxine for the first time, you may wish to ask your doctor to prescribe one of the currently FDA-approved levothyroxine products -- Unithroid or Levoxyl. This way, in the unlikely event that the FDA's interpretation of the August 14, 2001 deadline does take Synthroid off the market, even temporarily, you will start your treatment on an approved drug and become stabilized on an approved brand that will remain on the market without any risk of interruption whatsoever. According to research at Drugstore.com, Levoxyl is currently the less expensive of the two products, however prices may vary at local pharmacies. Both Unithroid and Levoxyl are less expensive than Synthroid, which, according to a [link url=http://thyroid.about.com/library/links/blsynthroidprice.htm]recent Reuters report[/link], had a price jump of 22.6% in the 12 months ending January 2001, a rate more than eight times the rate of inflation over the 1-year period.

If You Are On Synthroid And Having Problems, What Should You Do?

If you are a thyroid patient on Synthroid who is still experiencing symptoms, or having fluctuations in your TSH levels from test to test, you may wish to explore with your doctor the possibility of switching to one of the approved levothyroxine products -- Levoxyl or Unithroid -- to see if the FDA-established consistency and stability of the FDA-approved drugs helps regulate and stabilize your symptoms and TSH levels.

What If You are a Thyroid Cancer Survivor?

If you are a thyroid cancer survivor, it is particularly important that you have consistent, stable levels of levothyroxine in order to suppress your thyroid and prevent thyroid cancer recurrence, so discuss any concerns you might have with your physician right away.

What If You Are Taking Synthroid and Doing Well?

If you are a thyroid patient who is taking Synthroid and you are stabilized and not experiencing fluctuations or symptoms, then you may wish to talk with your physician about any concerns you may have, stay up on the latest developments concerning Synthroid's approval and availability. Also, consider developing a contingency plan with your physician in the unlikely event that Synthroid is pulled off the market in August should the FDA choose to interpret that approval -- and not filing for approval -- is required before the deadline in order for Synthroid to remain on the market.

Where Can You Get More Information?

Check out About.com's Synthroid Information Center, located at: [link url=http://thyroid.about.com/blsynthroid.htm]http://thyroid.about.com/blsynthroid.htm[/link] , for chronological coverage of the Synthroid research issues of 1997, the class action lawsuit, the FDA's call for regulation, and the battles over the FDA approvals for levothryoxine products -- all from the patient perspective, and focused on ensuring that patients get information that is not marketing, advertising, or sponsorship oriented.

In adddition to its own Synthroid.com site, in press releases and letters to patients, healthcare providers and pharmacists, Abbott promotes the sites of the American Thyroid Association, The Endocrine Society, and ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association as sources for more information about Synthroid. All these organizations, it should be noted, are receiving financial support directly from Synthroid's manufacturers.