Why does Eltroxin cause depression?

Question

Hello Doctor,

Since I started taking Eltroxin 10 days ago, I began to get highly depressed (as depressed as I want to die), and the other medication Synthroid is not available here. There is another one called Euthyrox, and they told me it is the same as Eltroxin; before I could find Eltroxin, I used it, which also caused the same thing.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Thanks for contacting me with the valid query. There is no difference in particular brands from different pharma companies. Before I proceed, I would like to tell you a few side effects of Eltroxin that we encounter infrequently. At the time of prescription, I omitted to say the side effects of Eltroxin as they are very uncommon. The most common side effect is hair loss. This may occur during the first few months of treatment. This is usually temporary as our body adjusts to this medicine. I hope you now understand why I omitted saying this before prescribing. As the risk of hair loss is very low compared to hypothyroidism, and this is a temporary effect, it is not an area of concern for most individuals. I prescribed this medication because I judged that your benefit is greater than the risk of side effects. Many people using this medicine do not have serious side effects. Allergic reactions to levothyroxine or its constituents can occur but are very rare.

The severe but unlikely side effects of high thyroid hormone levels include increased perspiration, heat intolerance, mood changes (such as nervousness, mood swings, as in your case), tiredness, diarrhea, tremor, headache, and shortness of breath. The other severe but rare side effects of this medicine are chest pain, fast/pounding heartbeat, swelling of hands, ankles, or feet, and seizures. These symptoms occur only when there is a high level of thyroid hormone in the body. With a 50 microgram dose, I do not feel that hyperthyroidism occurs if there is preexisting hypothyroidism. But there is a huge possibility of developing hyperthyroidism if the laboratory report is not accurate. The second possibility is that your requirement for thyroid hormone was less than the prescribed dose.

So at this stage, please stop the Eltroxin altogether immediately as the side effect is only due to high thyroxine levels in the body. Get the Thyroid function test (only TSH is enough) after three days from the different laboratory. Continue to use Pristiq (Desvenlafaxine) as advised. If you have tremors, pounding heartbeat, palpitations, heat intolerance, headache, or any other symptoms you feel started after Eltroxin, write in the free query section. I will answer immediately and will send you a prescription if necessary.