What Causes Cold Hands, Severe Fatigue, Hair Thinning And Cough After Menopause?

Posted on Wed, 10 Feb 2016

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 10 Feb 2016 Answered on

Mon, 6 Jun 2016 Last reviewed on

Question : I am normally very hot natured. Went thru menopause in 1999, am 66 yrs old. in the last month, I switch from having hot flashes to being very very cold, esp my hands. No temp. I am also extremely tired and could sleep 24/7 - other symptoms are my hair thinning a lot and a cough that will not totally go away. -also about 10 yrs ago I was diagnosed with an enlarged thyroid.Help!

Answered by Dr. Shehzad Topiwala (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Thyroid

Detailed Answer:
Sorry to note your symptoms.They seem to suggest the possibility of having an under-active thyroid.

When I see someone like you in my practice, I typically order the following blood tests in addition to a detailed physical examination:

CBC (Complete Blood Count, also known as Hemogram; includes Hemoglobin, WBC and Platelet counts)
Electrolytes (Sodium and Potassium in particular)
Calcium
HbA1c (Glycosylated Hemoglobin = your 3 month glucose average)
Liver function tests (SGOT , SGPT, Albumin, Bilirubin, Alkaline Phosphatase)
Kidney function tests (BUN, Creatinine)
TSH
25 hydroxy Vitamin D

And if your TSH comes back abnormally high then the following tests will be useful:

Free T4
Anti Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) antibodies
Anti Thyroglobulin antibodies

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar