Really high Oestrogen levels

[pamelatransuk]

Thank you Rachel and I hope your wait for surgery is short.

Hugs

Pamela

[KayXo]

This occasionally happens with gel and the reason for this is because the blood is drawn...WHERE THE GEL IS APPLIED. Don't apply the gel where you intend to have the blood drawn for at least a week before testing.

[pamelatransuk]

KayXo

Nice to see you returning to posting on the HRT Board. I appreciate you advice and experience greatly.

As you may have read on the "Comparison 12/13 Month" thread which I started on Feb 16th, my E readings have come down from their high level of last August!

Hugs

Pamela

[LizK]

This occasionally happens with gel and the reason for this is because the blood is drawn...WHERE THE GEL IS APPLIED. Don't apply the gel where you intend to have the blood drawn for at least a week before testing.

That is good to know....I was accused of self medicating which is total BS....I was unsure of what the mechanism is for the contamination. I usually alternate arms for application and the longest time from application to blood draw would be 2 days. I did not realise there would be a residual effect for as long as you indicate but it is the only way I can be getting the contamination.

I hate the dam patches I have used 2 and both have come off at some point. I am prepared to go through the first box and see how many will stay on but when I see my Dr in a couple of weeks I am going to insist on going back to the Gel. I am going to apply it in an area well away from my arms and see if we can't test properly.

Appreciate the input.

Liz


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[Rachel292]

I hate the dam patches I have used 2 and both have come off at some point. I am prepared to go through the first box and see how many will stay on but when I see my Dr in a couple of weeks I am going to insist on going back to the Gel. I am going to apply it in an area well away from my arms and see if we can't test properly.

Appreciate the input.

Liz

Re patches, I was applying 2 large ones at a time. And got a little irritation, but never lost one due to it not sticking. If you are going to use/apply patches, make sure the skin is clean and free from any grease and bacteria. Use rubbing alchohol or surgical spirit to clean the skin. I've also recently heard of folk using a little vodka as it will do the same thing due to the high alcohol content. Just make sure whatever you use has dried before application, then they will stick.

[LizK]

Hi Rachel

Thanks for replying to this thread. I normally wash and dry the area before applying the patch. After the first one came off I wiped down the area with an alcohol swab as well as cleaning i prior to applying the second patch.

I have now applied the third patch cleaning the area and swabbing down the skin with an alcohol swab similar to what is used befoer injections. About 12 hours later the edges had once again lifted causing them to catch on my clothing and actually ripping the patch off this time. This is exactly the type of thing that used to happen with the other medication patches I used. My skin reacts to medical grade glues and the frustrating part is this is why I was using the gel in the first place.

I have since written an email to my Dr proposing anothe trial with the Gel but using it on a different part of my body therefore completely eliminating the possability of contamination. I am at the moment using a Tegaderm type dressing to keep the patch on but even this will begin to break my skin down after a few weeks. The dressings I had to have for GCS made a huge mess of my skin when they came off after 7 days. It took nearly a month for them to heal.

Liz                         

[jill610]

I have been having a similar issue with my estradiol levels, though I inject (IM). It's been very worrisome as my levels also have been all over the place, both before and after GCS to the point where my dr is threatening to put me on pills which I adamantly don't want to do due to an issue I have had with my kidneys in the past.

I am very interested to see if you figure out what's going on. From a blood testing perspective, are your blood draws always at the same point in whatever cycle you are on (daily, weekly, whatever)?

[LizK]

This occasionally happens with gel and the reason for this is because the blood is drawn...WHERE THE GEL IS APPLIED. Don't apply the gel where you intend to have the blood drawn for at least a week before testing.

I have just come off the phone with my Dr after emailing her yesterday proposing that we try and eliminate contamination as the cause by returning to the Gel and applying it in a different area on the lower trunk thus removing the possible contamination issue. I took this post from KayXo and used it to find research to back up what was being said as I thought this was a very probable cause to the issue. Unfortunately I could not find anything to back this up but the logic of it struck me. I also suggested this as to the possible cause of the contamination to my Dr and when she called back she had the research to support this idea and suggested to me that there was a very real possibility that the residue would build up over a period of time and could very well be the cause of the contamination.

We have agreed on a new regime and I would like to thank KayXo for alerting me to this issue as I was totally unaware that this could even happen. This also explains why the issue has come about over a period of time because of the slow build of  Oestrogen within the fatty tissues. Thank you

I will still test for prolactin levels along with the other things she wanted tested to make sure the other possibilities are covered but I am betting we are onto a solution here.

I will follow up again after my blood draws in 4 weeks and the appointment with the Dr. Thanks to everyone who posted in this thread.

I have been having a similar issue with my estradiol levels, though I inject (IM). It's been very worrisome as my levels also have been all over the place, both before and after GCS to the point where my dr is threatening to put me on pills which I adamantly don't want to do due to an issue I have had with my kidneys in the past.

I am very interested to see if you figure out what's going on. From a blood testing perspective, are your blood draws always at the same point in whatever cycle you are on (daily, weekly, whatever)?

Hi Jill

With gel I don't cycle it but apply every day. My testing regime has never had a normal time for it to be done however my Dr has requested between 4-8 hrs after Gel has been applied . I am betting the issue here is caused because I have always applied the gel on my inner arm alternating each arm daily so at best it has only be 24 hrs since gel was applied to the spot and as was suggested it may be building up in the fatty tissue that the bloods are drawn through. I will let you know the outcome for my next bloods and what difference the new application makes.

[Rachel292]

I only apply my gel on inner thighs , alternating right/left daily, early morning.
Bloods are taken from the opposite arm , about 4 hours after application.

[KayXo]

Unfortunately I could not find anything to back this up

If you want, I can PM you the article/study that mentions this.

[LizK]

If you want, I can PM you the article/study that mentions this.

@KayXo

I would appreciate the article/study for future use. Your suggestion certainly made perfect sense to me considering the weird results I kept getting.

Liz 

[LizK]

As a follow up to this post and the change in regime from using the gel on the arms to the thighs. It would seem we have an accurate result with the levels having swung the other way and down at 116pg/ml or about 36 ng/dl. We are assuming this has to do with the way I have been applying the gel. I did post about this in my own personal thread but wanted to follow up in this one so anyone reading it can see a result...

Information on odd blood results when using oestradiol gel....

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378512203000434

"Skin contamination by topical 17β-oestradiol can distort plasma oestradiol measurements by giving much higher oestradiol concentrations than in reality there are in the systemic circulation. This has an important meaning when tailoring individual oestrogen therapy."

Thanks to Kayxo  for the valuable information that actively lead to the resolution of this issue for me.

End result being I actually have ended up with an increase in Oestradiol and I suspect I will need to increase further to get a therapeutic result.  I expect this will be the end of this and all that is required now is the Titration of dose.

Liz

[KayXo]

Glad to hear!