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Chronic lower back pain & Radiculopathy 21 yrs old
Spine Health | Last Active: Sep 8 11:12pm | Replies (20)Comment receiving replies
@ellakaluzinski04
You may want your doctor to fully evaluate your thyroid function and see if you have hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism (check TSH, T3, T4). You can also have them check TPO autoantibodies to see if you have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Thyroid disorders can affect cartilage. The thyroid gland plays a crucial role in regulating metabolism, growth, and development, which includes the health of connective tissues like cartilage. This could be behind some of your spine/joint/disc issues.
My mom also had lupus/RA/Hashimoto's so autoimmune runs in my family. When I started to have pain in my early 40s (after my first and only child was born), I was told I have a congenitally narrow spinal canal (~10mm) and that I have a spine that looks 25 years older than my chronological age. You definitely sound like you have something going on since it started in your teens.
Did you do any sports, gymnastics or dance when you were a child/teen?
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I’ll ask for a blood test for what you have mentioned. I am quite tall (6ft 2) and i weigh about 78 kilos i’m not sure if that could contribute to anything or not. I didn’t do gymnastics or dance when i was younger and i did sport sparsely nothing too intense or for long. I never even thought about the thyroid gland and how it can affect the cartilage in my body. Gives me more insight and more stuff to get tested for and more questions for my doctor. Thank you for the information !