Women approaching may also have persistently elevated LH levels | You may need to have a few blood tests to determine your fertile period |
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These are readily available online and in most pharmacies | But once a developing egg follicle reaches a certain size — usually around the midpoint of your cycle — LH secretion surges to really high levels |
Ovulation most likely occurs around day 18 | So knowing how long your cycle is from one period to the next will help you figure out when to start testing |
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This allows your doctor to look at your ovaries and see how the follicles are growing | Your LH surge is important because it initiates the beginning of ovulation and your fertile period |
This hormone surge is what triggers ovulation about 24 to 36 hours later.
21After the egg is released, the empty follicle on the ovary is converted to a structure known as the corpus luteum | After that, your fertile window is over |
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Usually, a gynecologist or reproductive endocrinologist infertility specialist can help you interpret the blood testing results | Some women with PCOS have persistently elevated levels of LH, which would lead to an OPK always displaying a positive result, regardless of where you are in your cycle |