Recently Forest Labs the company making Thyrolar in the US has announced a pause in the availability of this product in the states. The real reason for this remains in the higher levels of the atmosphere perched on the corner of Cloud St and CAT Av. But whatever the reason, there is an alternative at our pharmacy http://www.panamrx.com called Cynoplus. But first a little background on the subject.

According to the thyrolar website: Thyrolar (liotrix tablets, USP) is a synthetic product combining L-triiodothyronine (T3) and levothyroxine sodium (T4) and is indicated for the treatment of hypothyroidism.

Cynoplus from Grossman Labs is a 120/30 combination consisting of 120 mcg levothyroxine (T4) and 30 mcg liothyronine, which is another name for T3. There are 50 tablets in each little glass jar. The mcg stands for micrograms. This should not be confused with mg which stands for milligrams. Sometimes doses are given in grains. According to the PDR 25 mcg of liothyronine is equivalent to 1 grain of dessicated natural thyroid or thyroglobulin and it is also equivalent to 0.1mg (or 100 mcg) of levothyroxine.

Thyrolar info is also given in the PDF document at http://www.frx.com/pi/Thyrolar_pi.pdf , if you would like more exhaustive detail. For our purposes the Cynoplus is an almost identical match to Thyrolar-2. If you need lower doses it is simple enough to crush a pill on a little index card and divide it in half or quarters. A visual approx. is quite good, as a balance to measure these small quantities is expensive. This method should also save you money if you need one of the lower doses.

Forest Labs recommends the product be refrigerated to between 36 and 46 degf, which is typical refrigerator temperature. This does not mean that you should freeze it, as some compounds are not freeze stable. The Cynoplus data sheet says only to store at less than 30 degc or 86 degf. It makes sense to refrigerate in any case, and especially if you are storing any more than a supply for immediate use. Remember your chemistry? The speed of chemical reactions, including the ones that make things spoil, decreases by 50% for every 10 degc drop in temperature.

Doctors usually prescribe only the levothyroxine or T4 to patients with hypothyroidism. However, some patients respond to the T4/T3 combo better than just T4 alone. In our opinion, we suggest that you let your body tell you which is better. After all, empirical data is the basis of modern science. So why settle for only an opinion, when you can be your own better lab mouse?