@Dainty
I too suffer from dysmenorrhea for many many years, with worsen of all my symptoms at the same time, and some more added, a real nightmare for 2 days.
I recently found that I have the Low T3 syndrome (My thyroid standard test is all in the normal range however), so I started supplementing with T3 for about two weeks. It brought me huge improvement on my CFS/ME symptoms, so I have hope it will help me with dysmenorrhea as well, crossed fingers!
Here what I found about Thyroid and uterus (I don't found about Thyroid/uterus/ME, but about Fibro/thyroid/uterus, but if your symptoms of ME/CFS includes pains, Fibro can be an associated diagnosis)
Pattern of Thyroid Dysfunction in Women with Menstrual Disorders
RESULTS
The mean age of study patients was 25.7±6.8 years. The most common menstrual disorder observed was irregular cycle (72.5%, n=169) followed by amenorrhea (21.9%, n=51) and menorrhagia (5.6%, n=13). Most of the patients were in the age group 15-24 years (51.1%, n=119), followed by 25-34 years (36.1%, n=84) and 35-45 years (12.9%, n=30). Mean level of free T3 and T4 was 2.91±1.05 pg/ml, 1.42±0.57 ng/dl respectively. Median TSH was 2.0 mIU/L (IQR, 1.0-4.0).
Thyroid dysfunction was seen in 25.8% (n=60) women. Most common thyroid dysfunction was subclinical hypothyroidism (14.2%, n=33) followed by subclinical hyperthyroidism (6.9%, n=16), overt hyperthyroidism (3%, n=7) and overt hypothyroidism (1.7%, n=4).
CONCLUSIONS
The study finds thyroid dysfunction especially subclinical hypothyroidism to be common among women with menstrual disorders. Thus, it may be beneficial to screen menstrual disorder patients for thyroid function especially to rule out thyroid disorder as potential etiological agent for menstrual disturbance.
Is Fibromyalgia Syndrome Common in the Patients with Primary Dysmenorrhea?
Objective: To determine the association between fibromyalgia syndrome [FMS] and primary dysmenorrhea [PD].
Methods: Patients with PD formed the PD group and age-matched healthy normal controls were included in the HNC group. The new American College of Rheumatology FMS criteria were used in all patients and depression was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory [BDI].
Results: There were 45 patients in the PD group and 45 patients in the HNC group. We found FMS in 15.6% of the PD patients and 0.0% of the HNCs. The mean sum of the somatic symptoms was higher in the PD patients with FMS than without FMS. The mean sore of BDI was higher in the PD group than the HNC group, but the mean depression score of the PD patients with FMS was not significantly higher than PD patients without FMS.
Conclusions:
The frequency of FMS was increased in PD patients, especially in the PD patients who exhibited many somatic symptoms.
Triiodothyronine (T3) Treatment of Euthyroid Fibromyalgia
A Small-N Replication of a Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Crossover Study
ABSTRACT
Background. In a previous study, T3 was found to be highly effective compared to placebos in the treatment of euthyroid fibromyalgia. In this replication study, the comparative effects of placebos and T3 were tested with 4 euthyroid fibromyalgia patients. A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled crossover design was used.
Methods. Patients completed alternately two T3 phases and two placebo phases. The sequence for each patient depended on the medication with which she was randomly assigned to begin. Crossover from one phase to another was response-driven, based on changes in 3 measures of fibre-myalgia status: mean tender point sensitivity by algomctry, mean symptom intensity by visual analog scales, and pain distribution by the percentage method. Measurements taken repeatedly during each phase were used to determine when a patient's scores warranted a crossover. Patients also completed the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire and Zung's Self-Rating Depression Scale at the end of each phase.
Results. Paired-samples t-tests showed a highly significant difference between scores in placebo and T3 phases. Serial ECGs throughout the 8-month study, and urine and serum calcium, phosphorus, creatininc, serum alkaline phosphatase, and bone densitometry at 6-month follow-up revealed no adverse effects from T3.
Conclusion. The highly significant difference between fibromyalgia measures in placebo and T3 phases, despite the small N, indicates a powerful therapeutic effect of supraphysiologic dosages of T3. Despite low TSH and free and total T4 levels, and high free T3 levels, there was no evidence of thyrotoxicosis. Long-term safety of T3 use by euthyroid fibromyalgia patients has not yet been established.