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Counting Your Eggs: Can a New Test Predict Your Future Fertility? North Kingstown RI
For women in North Kingstown trying to determine how long they can postpone starting a family, a new fertility predictor, called Plan Ahead, may provide some insight into the length of their fertile lifespan, but does this test offer only false promises?
Provided By: For women trying to determine how long they can postpone starting a family, a new fertility predictor, called Plan Ahead, may provide some insight into the length of their fertile lifespan, but does this test offer only false promises?
"My hope is that Plan Ahead will help many women avoid the anguish caused by the early or unexpected arrival of declining fertility and menopause," stated Dr. Bill Ledger, the creator of Plan Ahead and professor of obstetrics & gynecology at the University of Sheffield in England in a press release.
Plan Ahead consists of a simple blood test—done by a doctor—on the third day of a woman's period. The blood sample is then sent to a lab where particular hormone levels are measured and compared to levels in the average woman of the same age. This allows the lab to estimate the number of eggs left in a woman's ovaries and predict her fertility for the next two years, claims Lifestyle Choices, the manufacturer of Plan Ahead.
Other "egg counters" only measure the amount of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) in the bloodstream. This particular hormone drops off towards the end of a woman's fertile years. However, Plan Ahead also tests for two other hormones, inhibin B and anti-mullerian hormone (AMH), which seem to decline earlier in a woman's reproductive life, signaling the beginning of the end, so to speak.
"By combining the test on all three hormones, we are able to offer women the most accurate ovarian reserve hormone test available in the w...
