How safe are conventional ovulation tests?

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Which accurate ovulation test is suitable for me?

Knowing when you ovulate is the key information to pinpoint and target your fertile days. To determine your fertility, there are very different reliable ovulation tests. You should carefully review the pros and cons of your method of choice. That way, you don’t build up unrealistic expectations.

The bottom line is that there are 2 types of accurate ovulation tests: On the one hand, there are classic urine tests that determine the hormone concentration at a given point in time. On the other hand, there are also modern digital ovulation tests with continuous cycle monitoring. In order to record your individual cycle in its entirety, continuous observation is important! So don’t rely on inaccurate ovulation tests if you want to get pregnant!

A digital accurate ovulation test like OvulaRing evaluates your entire cycle instead. Ovulation actually always occurs at the same time as a significant rise in body temperature. Based on this pattern in the temperature, your ovulation is determined reliably and precisely. OvulaRing measures your body core temperature around the clock and thus reliably shows you your ovulation and your fertile days.

Getting pregnant with classic accurate ovulation tests?

How conventional ovulation tests workare with classic ovulation tests?

One method to help determine ovulation is conventional ovulation tests as disposable test strips. These urine tests (“pee strips”) are widely available. There are various instructions on how you can use them to help fulfill your desire to have a child. However, since ovulation cannot be determined directly with the help of a urine strip, the hormone concentration of the hormone LH in the urine is evaluated here. If the LH concentration in your urine is higher than a set limit, the LH test will show a positive result. However, this result is only meaningful for this moment. To make changes visible, you can perform many tests one after the other, e.g. one test daily.

What the LH determination in urine tells you

Luteinizing hormone (LH) is an important messenger in the control of numerous sexual functions. It is produced in the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. During the fertile phase, it is secreted in greater quantities and, in a healthy cycle, triggers ovulation through a sudden increase. Incidentally, LH is excreted again in the urine. A conventional ovulation test can then evaluate the hormone concentration of LH in your urine. The test reacts to the amount of ovulation-inducing LH in the urine.

Until now, it was assumed that ovulation always occurs about 1 to 2 days after a high LH level. In addition, there were explanations that the highest LH concentration, the so-called LH peak, is reached about 24 to 36 hours before ovulation. Only with such a direct correlation would the LH concentration in the urine be able to make a reliable statement about impending ovulation. So much for the theory, because new research results refute this direct connection!

A classic ovulation test with LH measurement in the urine cannot determine your ovulation exactly.

The changes in LH concentration over the course of the cycle have actually been observed in a completely different way than previously assumed. On top of that, scientists were able to identify distinct LH patterns for the first time. In addition, individual LH surges vary greatly in pattern, strength, frequency and duration. In only a few of the cycles studied did the LH surge end at all before ovulation. In the vast majority of cycles, LH increased even further after ovulation!*

Why an LH test is not reliable

Individual LH pattern not determinable with one-shot test

The scientists were able to show that an LH surge in urine is not always followed by ovulation.* They have also shown that there is a wider range of LH patterns than previously thought. Researchers were able to document LH surges with a single peak (48%), a double peak (33%), multiple peaks (8%) and a plateau (11%). On average, the LH high was even 1.2 days after ovulation and not before ovulation as assumed. In only 6% of cycles did the LH surge end before ovulation. However, in the overwhelming majority (94%), LH continued to surge after ovulation. In 60% of the cycles even longer than 3 days. Furthermore, ovulation was 6 days before or 5 days after the LH high in 25% of the cycles. As a result, the measurement of the LH content in urine is contradictory. Ovulation simply cannot be determined exactly in this way.

Persistently elevated LH concentrations

In polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), hypofunction of the ovaries (primary ovarian insufficiency) or the onset of menopause, the LH level is often always elevated. Here, for example, the accurate ovulation test would remain positive throughout. In 60% of all women with PCOS, such an increased LH concentration could be observed.** A statement about ovulation is therefore often not possible with an accurate ovulation test!

Persistently decreased LH concentrations

Diseases of the hypothalamus can lead to persistently low LH concentrations. This is the case, for example, with anorexia, benign tumors in the pituitary gland, chronic diseases such as cystic fibrosis or inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. Even if the LH surge is too weak, the accurate ovulation test remains negative, although ovulation is imminent. The test procedure is then not sensitive enough to indicate this weak rise. Ovulation is missed!

LH tests unsuitable for long cycles

Women with PCOS usually have prolonged cycles with late or absent ovulations. With PCOS, you would therefore need a lot of accurate ovulation tests. This is not only time-consuming, but also nerve-racking and expensive! On top of that, the many tests create a large mountain of waste.

Fluctuations due to the course of the day and medication

Your LH concentrations can fluctuate significantly even in the normal course of the day. In addition, taking antibiotics, psychotropic drugs, hormone therapy or diseases of the liver, kidneys or ovaries can affect the safety of the LH test.

Unclear test result

Positive or negative – the LH test is not always clear and many women have to “oracle”. Individual differences in LH levels and the sensitivity of the respective test system have a significant influence on your result.

One-point measurement shows no progression

The hormone determination in urine alone is based on only one measurement point per day. It therefore does not provide an overall view of your cycle. Continuous cycle monitoring is important so that you can understand your individual cycle in its entirety. If you want to get pregnant, you should not rely on inaccurate classic ovulation tests. OvulaRing as a modern digital ovulation test measures your core body temperature around the clock. Every 5 minutes OvulaRing stores your body temperature, that’s 288 measurement points a day, and reliably shows you your fertile days and ovulation.

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Take control of your own fertility and get to know your cycle better. Whether you are looking to get pregnant, support natural birth control or simply find out how your cycle ticks.

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OvulaRing - the modern accurate ovulation test

and why OvulaRing is more than just a fertility app or a cycle tracker

Suitable for all cycle types

Is your cycle ultra short, extremely long or irregular? Thanks to the high resolution, continuous measurement, OvulaRing can be used for all cycle types and it has been validated for the most diverse cycle types in 3 medical studies.

Continuous measurement

The patented OvulaRing method does not identify fertile days by means of the basal temperature. OvulaRing measures and analyzes core body temperature 288 times a day, enabling it to identify individual fertility patterns that allow a precise statement to be made regarding cycle activity.

Practical and not noticeable

OvulaRing is simple to use and unnoticeable. When wearing OvulaRing you can still do sports, go in the sauna, have sex and enjoy your life. Automatic measurement within the body delivers precise findings, regardless of the rhythms that determine your life.

Analyzes your cycle and delivers results in real time

OvulaRing can tell you precisely whether you are ovulating and if your cycles are healthy. When OvulaRing has gotten to know your individual cycle pattern the evaluation software also analyzes your likelihood of conceiving.

Developed by gynaecologists and clinically tested

OvulaRing is based on 40 years of scientific research by renowned gynaecologists and reproductive health experts. The accuracy of OvulaRing has been proven in independent medical studies.

free of hormones and no side effects

OvulaRing works completely without hormones and is free of plasticisers and side effects. The high level of wearing comfort and tolerability of the material have been confirmed in multiple medical studies.

Determine your ovulation now with OvulaRing - do you still have questions?

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*Direito A et al. 2012. Relationships between the luteinizing hormone surge and other characteristics of the menstrual cycle in normally ovulating women. Fertil Steril; 99:279-85. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2012.08.047. Epub 2012 Sep 19. Zum Artikel.

**The Rotterdam ESHRE/ASRM-sponsored PCOS consensus workshop group. 2004. Revised 2003 consensus on diagnostic criteria and longterm health risks related to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Human Reproduction 19; 1:41-47.

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