/5why Does Pcos Impact Fertility And Lower Odds Of Natural Conception
While PCOS is primarily a hormonal disorder, it can lead to the creation of cysts in the reproductive ducts. With polycystic ovaries, there’s an increase in the production of male sex hormones, androgen, which can further prevent the release of eggs from the ovaries. When you do not ovulate, it can be difficult to get pregnant. The hormonal imbalance can also lead to an increased egg count, and a slower rate of follicle breakdown than the generalized estimates.
Women with PCOS, and suffering from problems like obesity can also face a longer time than usual in conceiving, or require help. Some studies have also found that uncontrolled PCOS can also pose problems for a woman’s heath post conception, and lead to problems like preeclampsia, pregnancy-induced hypertension and gestational diabetes.
How Does Normal Ovulation Work
In a normal menstrual cycle with ovulation a number of eggs mature in follicles in your ovaries. The ripest egg is released into one of your fallopian tubes, where it meets the sperm if there is any.
If you have PCOS although the polycystic ovaries contain follicles with eggs in them, the follicles do not develop and mature properly – so there is no ovulation or release of eggs. This is called anovulation.
Many women do not find out they have PCOS until they try to conceive, particularly if they were using contraception that uses hormones, which masks irregular or no periods, because it allows for a monthly bleed.
Since my diagnosis and journey to conceive began, I have found out so many other women I know have it and have also had problems conceiving. I think a lot of us had the symptoms when we were teenagers but went on the pill which masked the condition for years.
PCOS sufferer
Weight Gain And Fertility
Unfortunately, the high androgen levels also lead to weight gain or make it very difficult for you to lose weight. And because its a male hormone, most of the excess weight is in the abdominal area. Being overweight also increases your risk of insulin resistance, which lead to an increase in androgen production, affecting both fertility and weight.
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Tips For Getting Pregnant If You Have Pcos
While getting pregnant with PCOS is certainly possible, it can be more difficult for some. Here are some top tips to help you on your fertility journey:
1. Understand your menstrual cycle: In particular, how frequent and regular it is. This is the first important step to take when it comes to fertility and understanding your condition. If you think you might be experiencing irregular cycles, its important to figure out what the underlying cause is. PCOS is a common reason for irregular cycles, but there are other common causes such as a thyroid hormone imbalance, stress, diet and lifestyle choices, and medication .
2. Cycle tracking: Irregular ovulation and changing cycle lengths can make it tough to determine your fertile window , and timing sex for the middle of your cycle may not always coincide with ovulation, causing you to miss your optimum conception time. The best way to determine if and when you are ovulating is by tracking these signs.
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Hertili-tip! After tracking your cycles for around three months, if you notice any irregularities we recommend taking a hormone and fertility test to help give you an insight into the inner workings of your cycle. The NHS recommends seeking advice if your cycles occur more often than 21 days or less often than every 35 days, especially if you are trying to conceive.
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3. Maintain a healthy weight: Ensuring your weight is within a healthy range can increase your chance of spontaneous ovulation and regular periods.
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Q: What Can A Woman Expect From Her First Appointment With A Fertility Specialist
A: When I meet with a patient for the first time, I focus on gathering and giving information. I want to learn all that I can about your health history and then explain your treatment options.
During your first visit, a fertility specialist will want to get an extensive health history. You can prepare for your visit by coming with some of this information on hand:
- Bring medical records from your general doctor . If you have tracked your cycles, bring that information with you.
- Write down approximate dates for when certain health events happened, like your first period, and when you were diagnosed with any chronic conditions, like PCOS.
- Know your familys health history. Does PCOS, diabetes, infertility, or miscarriages run in your family? You might need to ask an older relative about some of this.
Next you can expect a full exam. The exam will probably include:
- Blood tests to check your sex hormone levels, thyroid status, and risk of diabetes.
- A trans-vaginal ultrasound of your ovaries to evaluate your cysts.
- A physical exam to see how other PCOS symptoms present for you, like in your hair growth and acne patterns.
Once I have gathered all of this information, I like to sit down with a patient and have a long conversation about treatment options. Selecting a treatment plan for infertility can be an intensely personal decision, as finances, social support, religion and a persons unique health history can all factor into the decision.
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Getting Pregnant With Pcos: Why Is It Harder
Its true that for some people with PCOS, getting pregnant can take a little longer. Thats because PCOS a common hormonal disorder that affects between 5% and 10% of reproductive aged women can make some people ovulate irregularly, or not at all. As ovulation is a vital part of getting pregnant, this irregularity can make things tricky but more on that below.
Odds Of Getting Pregnant With Pcos Naturally
Simply put, PCOS can prevent ovulation, the release of an egg. Without ovulation, pregnancy cannot occur during that cycle. A diagnosis of PCOS does not mean you cant get pregnant either naturally, or with assisted reproductive treatments, but it can make the journey longer and more difficult. Because the symptoms of PCOS and their severity are so variable, there is no specific statistic we can highlight to provide odds or a percent chance of getting pregnant.
In one cross-sectional study of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Womens Health , researchers found that 72% of women with PCOS reported infertility. 16% of women from the study without PCOS reported infertility. In this study, women with PCOS were 4.5 times more likely to report infertility. Infertility reporting was significantly higher in women with PCOS .
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Being Pregnant With Pcos: What Do You Need To Know About Pregnancy Complications
Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome don’t just have a harder time getting pregnant they also, unfortunately, have a higher risk of pregnancy complications, including:
- Early pregnancy loss
- Preeclampsia
- Preterm delivery
Whether you are still trying to get pregnant with PCOS and informing yourself about what’s ahead, or you’re already expecting a baby, you will want to know what you and your healthcare provider can do to increase the odds of a healthy pregnancy with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.
How Do I Cope With Symptoms Of Pcos
One of the best ways to cope with PCOS is to lose weight with healthy eating and regular exercise. Even a small amount of weight loss can affect hormone levels and help to regulate your menstrual cycle and ease your symptoms.
If excess hair growth or acne is hurting your confidence, cosmetic treatments or working with a dermatologist might be helpful.
Finally, if you are trying to conceive and have been diagnosed with PCOS, know that you are not alone. Your healthcare provider will work with you to help you get pregnant. Eating healthy and lowering your stress levels can go a long way in helping you manage PCOS.
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Making It Difficult To Get Pregnant
Its a very complicated disease, but traditionally speaking, if you are not ovulating consistently every month, then theres a significantly decreased chance for you to conceive. If you dont release an egg appropriately every month then its not going to be possible for sperm and egg to unite to create an embryo. For women with PCOS, its the anovulation that really speaks for the reason for infertility.
“A typical couple who has regular intercourse and does not have to visit a fertility specialist has approximately a 20 percent chance of conceiving each month. Women with PCOS do not ovulate every month, but perhaps only two or three times a year, severely diminishing their chances of conceiving.”
Dr. Abigail Delaney
Struggling With Infertiltycould The Cause Be Pcos Or Endometriosis
Endometriosis is a condition in which the tissue that lines the inside of your uterus grows outside the uterus but continues to act as it normally would: thickening, breaking down, and inducing bleeding as part of the monthly menstrual cycle.2
Three telltale symptoms of endometriosis are:
- Painful periods
- Pain with intercourse
- Difficulty conceiving
If you experience at least two of these symptoms, you might consider discussing the need to be tested for endometriosis, says Dr. Richard-Davis. With regard to miscarriages, both doctors emphasized that endometriosis is an unlikely cause of miscarriages on its own but when occurring with at least one other sign, it may suggest the need to discuss your concerns with your healthcare provider. In addition, other signs such as heavy bleeding or bleeding between periods and pain during urination or bowel movements can also point to endometriosis.
Polycystic ovary syndrome, more commonly known as PCOS, is a multifactorial disorder that impacts hormonal, metabolic, and reproductive functions. PCOS is characterized by what Dr. Richard-Davis calls a very specific constellation of symptoms related to irregular menstrual cycles and excess circulating androgens. Androgens are the sex hormones that are usually higher in men and are responsible for excessive hair growth as well as adult acne in women.
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How Does Pcos Affect Fertility
On average, women with PCOS take longer to fall pregnant than other women. This can be because they have irregular periods which means that they dont ovulate every month. Also, being overweight reduces fertility and can contribute to women with PCOS taking longer to conceive. The good news is that through their life, women with PCOS have as many children as other women.
Although women with PCOS have more fertility problems than other women, they need reliable contraception to avoid unplanned pregnancy.
Understanding Your Odds Of Pregnancy By Age
Haley Fritz
Banafsheh Kashani
MD, FACOG
From your doctor asking if youre thinking about getting pregnant soon to nosy relatives asking when youre going to settle down, you may have felt your biological clock counting down already. With all the pressure placed on women to have a baby by a certain age, it can be easy to feel like your fertility is a ticking time bomb.
Thankfully, age does not necessarily limit your fertility as much as you may think. More and more women are choosing to wait until their 30s and 40s to have a child for reasons like pursuing career goals, traveling the world, or finding the right partner.
Still, that does not mean that your fertility is an unlimited reserve. While its becoming more common and, thanks to modern medical technology, safer to have children at an older age, your fertility still changes significantly as you get older. Heres what you need to know to understand your odds of pregnancy by age.
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Follow My Baby’s Growth
Scientists still arent exactly sure what causes PCOS, but they believe youre more likely to develop it if it runs in your family or if you have insulin resistance.
While its named polycystic ovary syndrome, confusingly, you dont always develop polycystic ovaries if you have PCOS. Instead, you may be diagnosed with PCOS if you have two of the following three symptoms:
- Irregular or missed periods
- A high level of male hormones, called androgens
- Polycystic ovaries, which occur when small egg sacs on the ovaries become filled with fluid, known as cysts
But back to how all this can affect your chances of getting pregnant. Lubna Pal, professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine, explains that in order for pregnancy to happen, you need to have an egg that is released from your ovaries .
After ovulation, an unfertilized egg stays in the uterine tubes for 12 to 24 hours before it dissolves and is shed as part of a period. If its fertilized by sperm before then, however, it can lead to a successful pregnancy. But if youre not having regular periods, it means youre probably not ovulating regularly either. As a result, Pal explains, the probability of conception goes down.
Thats not the only way PCOS may impact getting pregnant, however. One theory thats been researched suggests that PCOS can cause hormonal imbalances that change the quality of your cervical fluid, making it harder for sperm to survive.
Can I Get Pregnant With Pcos Naturally
PCOS is a common hormonal disorder that affects reproductive-aged women. About 5%10% of women from ages of 1544 have PCOS. It is a condition in which the ovaries can have many small follicles of fluid and will not release eggs regularly. If eggs are not released monthly, getting pregnant with PCOS may be difficult. However, there are ways to increase the probability of conceiving naturally.
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How Is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Diagnosed
A diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome is based on a patients symptoms, blood tests, and a physical examination.
A woman must have two out of three of the following criteria to be diagnosed with PCOS:
- Irregular menstrual periods caused by lack of ovulation or irregular ovulation
- Evidence of elevated androgen levels
- Signs such as excess hair growth, acne, or male-pattern balding
- Blood tests that indicate high androgen levels
In addition to the diagnostic criteria, doctors must rule out other causes of elevated androgen levels or irregular periods in order to diagnose PCOS.
Blood tests that may be used to diagnose PCOS include:
Recognizing Early Signs Of Pregnancy
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Getting Pregnant With Pcos: How To Boost Your Chances
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If you have PCOS and youre thinking about having a baby, the first thing to know is that lots of women with PCOS do get pregnant naturally or with treatments available. The main reason PCOS can sometimes make it more difficult to get pregnant is because it affects how your ovaries work and can cause irregular ovulation.
Youre not alone on your PCOS and pregnancy journey. PCOS is a common condition thought to affect up to 15 out of every 100 women. And weve got the best science-backed information to help you work out whats the next best step for you.
So lets take a look at some of the questions you may have about
How Long It May Take To Get Pregnant
If you are under 35, ovulate regularly, and you and your partner have no other medical conditions that affect your fertility, the likelihood is that pregnancy will occur within a year and probably sooner. This is true whether you have PCOs or not.
If either you or your partner has other medical conditions that affect your fertility, like a low sperm count or endometriosis, it may take longer than a year.
For most females, natural fertility starts to decline by around age 32 and will decline even more substantially by age 37. While some females do conceive naturally well into their 40s, the need for fertility assistance is more likely.
The issue with PCOS, of course, is that hormonal imbalances caused by the disorder can interfere with the growth and release of eggs from the ovaries. If you don’t ovulate, you cannot get pregnant. In such cases, you would need to speak with a doctor about ways to improve ovulation and your chances of conceiving.
Most experts recommend that you seek treatment if you are not pregnant after one year of trying if under the age of 35. If you are over 35, that number drops to six months.
If you do not get regular periods or have other fertility problems, like endometriosis, seek help right away from a reproductive endocrinologist.
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