When planning a pregnancy, women are usually more sensitive to their well-being and signs of impending ovulation, since it is this period that gives a woman the opportunity to become pregnant. And sometimes in the middle of the cycle, when an important day is expected, there are no signs of ovulation - and the basal temperature remains unchanged, and ovulation tests persistently produce a single strip instead of the expected two.
Many at this stage believe that their cycle this time is anovulatory and give up trying to determine a favorable time for conception. But in vain. The most stubborn and persistent ladies know that sometimes only before menstruation the ovulation test suddenly becomes positive, and the release of the egg itself is late.
What it is?
It is generally believed that female ovulation occurs exactly in the middle of the cycle, dividing it into two halves of the phase. The calendar method for its determination suggests subtracting 14to determine on what day to expect the release of a mature egg from the follicle. If the cycle lasts 28 days, then ovulation is expected on the 14th day from the day the last menstruation began, with a cycle of 30 days - on the 16th day, with a cycle of 26 days - on the 12th day of the cycle, and so on. But everything would be simple if the calendar method was 100% accurate.
Ovulation is a complex process that can change under the influence of many factors, both external and internal. The follicle grows after the end of the next menstruation under the influence of hormones, and the hormonal background, as you know, is very sensitive to various factors.
The second phase of the female cycle after ovulation usually lasts more or less a certain time. Usually it is considered that it is two weeks (14 days plus or minus a day). This duration is due to the lifespan of the corpus luteum, which forms as a temporary source of progesterone at the site of the bursting follicle from which the egg came out.
Late ovulation in the understanding of doctors is a late release of the oocyte from the follicle, when a significant moment for those planning a pregnancy occurs later than in the middle of the menstrual cycle. It is difficult to say how late the release of the egg will be. Much has to do with the cycle length of a particular woman.. When it lasts from 30 to 34 days, then ovulation is considered late if it occurs after 25 days of the cycle.... If a lady's cycle itself lasts more than 35 days, then the release of an egg in it always occurs with a delay, which requires a medical examination and treatment, since such a female cycle cannot be considered normal and healthy from the outset.
With a standard cycle (the most common) of 28-29 days, late ovulation should be talked about when it is actually implemented after 16 days from the beginning of the first day of the last menstruation. Occasionally it also happens that the release of a mature oocyte occurs only on the 20th day of the cycle, that is, shortly before menstruation. You can track this phenomenon by regularly drawing up a basal temperature schedule, and also conduct home testing with pharmacy ovulation tests.
Role of hormones
Late ovulation often requires the appointment of a woman with certain hormonal agents, since it is always associated with a violation of the hormonal accompaniment of the ovulatory process. To understand why ovulation is late, you need to clearly understand what processes lead to it. The mechanisms of hormonal regulation of oocyte maturation and release are five-step. They involve the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, limbic system, and amygdala.
The "commander-in-chief" of the ovulatory process is the hypothalamus. It produces liberins, which stimulate the production of hormones necessary for the female cycle. Follyberin, for example, as a middle-level commander, triggers the production of FSH, a follicle-stimulating hormone, in a lady's body, and luliberin is responsible for the production of luteinizing hormone. FSH allows follicles to grow, increase, and LH provokes rupture of a mature dominant follicle on the day of ovulation. The hypothalamus also produces a group of statin hormones, whose task is to slow down the production of other hormones that are not needed for ovulation.
The pituitary gland, obeying the command of the hypothalamus, produces FSH. Under its action, estrogen increases in the first half of the female cycle. At the right time, the pituitary gland switches to the synthesis of luteinizing hormone.
Sex glands - the ovaries are involved in the production of progesterone in the second phase of the cycle and estrogen in the first. The duration of the female cycle, by the way, depends on the balance of these hormones.
All organs that have a natural sensitivity to hormones in general respond to changes in hormonal support on different days of the cycle. This is the breast, and adipose tissue in the body, and bone tissue and even hair follicles. And, of course, there is a reaction from the side of the uterus - its task is to build up the endometrium. If conception takes place, then a sufficient layer of the endometrium will provide the embryo with a successful implantation; if it does not take place, then the enlarged cells will be rejected and taken out during the next menstruation.
After the completion of menstruation, the pituitary gland begins to produce FSH and, in a small concentration, luteinizing hormone. If at this stage the progesterone content is increased, then ovulation may not occur at all. As you approach the middle of the cycle, the concentration of estrogen increases, which provokes a sharp release of LH - this is called the luteinizing peak. Usually after it, within a day, the follicle bursts and releases an egg, ready for fertilization. And here the follicle is in a very dependent position - any imbalance of LH, androgens can lead to the fact that ovulation does not occur at the right time.
The concentration of progesterone in the female body begins to increase after ovulation. Its task is to prepare the body for pregnancy. If it does not come, then 5-6 days before menstruation, the level of progesterone decreases, the level of estrogen rises and premenstrual changes begin, the body adjusts to menstruation.
It is possible to determine the ratio of hormones in a woman's blood on any day of the cycle with the help of a laboratory study of venous blood, which allows the doctor to establish in which of the endocrine stages the "failure" occurs. Correction is performed with hormonal drugs that increase or decrease the level of certain hormones in order for ovulation to be timely.
Causes
The five-step hormonal process can be disrupted by any external or internal factors.
The most common causes of late ovulation are the following:
- the woman is in a state of chronic stress, is nervous, has suffered a bereavement, shock;
- there has been a change in climatic or time zones;
- preceded by an abortion;
- the woman was protected with oral contraceptives before planning, the abolition of OC causes a hormonal "disorder" in the body;
- the setting period of the menstrual cycle after childbirth - up to a year;
- breastfeeding with a restored cycle;
- transferred infectious diseases - influenza, ARVI, as well as colds and other diseases that occurred with an increase in body temperature;
- premenopausal period;
- gynecological diseases occurring with an increased level of estrogen in the blood - endometriosis, hyperplasia of the endometrial layer, breast cancer;
- diseases that occur with an increase in the level of male sex hormones in a woman's blood - polycystic ovaries, dysfunction of the adrenal cortex.
If a woman has a generally normal cycle (28 days), but ovulation is late, this may be a sign of a latent inflammatory process in the uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries, and it may also be practically the only manifestation of infections such as chlamydia, ureaplasma.
Late ovulation can occur in a woman with any disease of the pituitary gland, hypothalamus, ovaries. Often the delayed release of the oocyte is a consequence of obesity, since adipose tissue is also capable of producing hormones, and therefore the balance necessary for a correct cycle is disturbed.
Features and signs
Late ovulation has almost the same signs as the timely release of the oocyte from the follicle.
- The amount of cervical secretion increases... Vaginal discharge becomes more abundant, reminiscent of a viscous raw chicken egg white. With delayed ovulation, the appearance of small bloody streaks in the cervical secretion is not excluded, and the discharge may also become yellowish.
- Basal temperature drops sharply, and then it rises sharply - the day of this decline is the day of ovulation.
- There is a pulling sensation in the lower abdomen - not a mandatory feature that is not common to everyone.
- The breasts become more sensitive, the nipples react more quickly with tension to touch.
- Emotional state changes, sexual desire increases.
With a fairly high accuracy, ovulation, even late, is shown by pharmaceutical ovulation test systems, and it is also possible to do an ultrasound of the ovaries and donate blood for LH and FSH.
Conception and pregnancy features
Is it possible to get pregnant with late ovulation? Yes, it is possible, but only when the fact of the delayed release of the oocyte is not associated with polycystic ovary disease or other diseases that in themselves can cause infertility. Also, a woman should take into account that with late ovulation, her chances of conceiving are reduced. If timely, the probability of conceiving is within 11-30% (age and health should be taken into account). With a late one - about 7-15%. But there is still a chance of pregnancy.
If your period does not start as expected, it is possible that you are pregnant. But a pregnancy test on the first day of delay, as recommended by the manufacturer focused on normal ovulation, should not be performed... After ovulation and fertilization, the embryo needs about 7-8 days to complete the implantation of the ovum into the endometrial layer of the uterus.
If ovulation itself was late, then implantation will be late.
Pregnancy tests react to the hCG hormone, which is produced by the chorionic villi after implantation. Chorionic gonadotropin levels rise every two days. And therefore tests with high sensitivity will show a positive result 7-8 days of missed periods... Before that, tests may be negative due to the small amount of hCG in the urine, which the test systems do not catch.
The peculiarities of the course of pregnancy, which occurred in a cycle with late ovulation, are that doctors will occasionally "scare" the expectant mother with a possible lagging behind the child's developmental norms. All obstetric formulas will imply a standard cycle, with standard ovulation, and in fact your baby will be a week younger in gestational age, or even more.
Also, questions may arise when determining the expected date of birth - doctors will consider that it should happen earlier. But the time of the onset of ovulation does not affect the sex of the child; this question does not depend on the egg at all. You will have a boy or a girl, depending on whether the sperm with which genetic set fertilized the oocyte - XX (girl) or XY (boy).
Well, if you know for sure that ovulation was late, then you are not afraid of misunderstandings during pregnancy., you can always explain to the doctor that the oocyte exit was late. That is why it is recommended for those planning a pregnancy to control their basal temperature, as well as conduct pharmacy tests or use symptothermal methods for recognizing fertility.
If conception occurred in a cycle with late ovulation, a woman may be in danger of spontaneous abortion due to a reduction in the second phase of the cycle and insufficient readiness of the endometrium for implantation. Often on this occasion, women are advised to take progesterone medications to maintain pregnancy during the first trimester.
The gestational age, which became possible in a cycle with a delayed oocyte release, is determined standardly, according to obstetric formulas, from the first day of the last menstruation, but in the exchange card, the doctor can indicate that late ovulation has taken place, which will imply a correction of the timing with an eye to this fact ... A woman's demands to count her pregnancy from the day of her ovulation, even if she knows exactly her date, cannot be a reason for revising the term.
Do I need to undergo treatment?
If late ovulation happened once or twice, this is not yet a reason for treatment. It is necessary to analyze whether there were factors of influence - flights, travel, stress, colds, weight fluctuations, and the like. But when late ovulation repeats three cycles in a row or more, a doctor's consultation is necessary, and only a specialist knows the exact answer whether therapy is needed in each specific situation.
In most cases, according to reviews, if the phenomenon is not associated with diseases, it is enough to establish a normal night's sleep, eat properly and in a balanced manner, it is enough to move, regularly have sex and give up bad habits. Late ovulation is dangerous only when a woman does not control her, does not know the features of her cycle. She may face miscarriages, lack of implantation, even with a completed conception.
You can learn more about the female cycle in the video below.
