If you’re trying to conceive, you’re probably familiar with the basics of ovulation: Once each month, a mature egg is released from one of the ovaries and is available to be fertilized. This 12- to 24-hour window is when your fertility peaks, making it the best time to have sex when you’re trying for a baby. Show
Ovulation occurs in the middle of the menstrual cycle. But every woman’s cycle is different, and your own ovulation can vary from month to month. There are several ways to figure out when you’re ovulating, and ovulation test strips are one of the best options out there. Here’s a look at how they work, how to use them and whether they’re right for you. What are ovulation test strips and how do they work?Ovulation test strips or ovulation predictor kits (OPKs) are at-home tests you can use to determine when you’re ovulating. Because you’re most fertile during ovulation, the kits can help increase your chances for success when you’re trying to conceive. Ovulation test strips work by measuring levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) in your urine. A rise in LH signals the ovary to release an egg — so when your levels reach a certain threshold, it’s safe to assume that ovulation will occur within the next 12 to 36 hours. How do you use ovulation strips to predict your most fertile days of the month?It’s easy: All you have to do is pee on a stick or strip (or pee in a cup and dip the stick or strip into the cup) and wait a few minutes for the indicator to appear. If the test line shows up darker than the control line, you’re about to ovulate. (There are always low levels of LH in your body, so if the test line shows up but appears lighter or fainter than the control line, you’re not ovulating yet. Using an ovulation test strip with a digital readout can eliminate this confusion altogether.) Ovulation tends to occur about halfway through your menstrual cycle. So it’s best to start using an ovulation predictor test a few days before your midway point. (If your cycle is 28 days, for instance, take your first test on day 10 or 11. If your cycles are irregular, use the length of your shortest cycle in the last 6 months as a guide and begin testing three to four days sooner than the midpoint of your shortest cycle.) You might need to test for a few days to detect a surge in LH, which is totally normal. Most kits come with five to 10 test strips. If you use an ovulation test strip with a digital reader, it can compare your current hormone levels with the levels you’ve had on previous days. That can make it even easier to determine when your LH is surging. Are there any other pointers you should consider? To get the most accurate reading, you’ll want to:
Once the test indicates that your LH levels are on the upswing, start having sex that day. Have sex for two to three days afterwards too, since ovulation can occur within 36 hours of LH levels rising. How accurate are ovulation test strips?Ovulation test strips can do an excellent job of letting you know when you’re most fertile. In fact, studies suggest they can detect ovulation up to 97 percent of the time, making them the most accurate option out there. But there are a few key things to keep in mind. Most important? Ovulation strips show whether your hormones are at the right level for ovulation. They can predict the ideal time to try to conceive, but they still don’t guarantee that conception will definitely take place. The kits also tend to be more accurate for some women than others. Ovulation predictor kits work best for women whose cycles are relatively predictable. But they might be less reliable if you:
How much do ovulation test strips cost and are they covered by insurance?Prices vary based on factors like brand, the number of strips in the kit and whether the test has a digital reader. A box of basic test strips usually costs between $12 and $25, depending how many strips are in the box. You can expect to pay a little more for ovulation test strips or ovulation predictor kits with digital readers — between $32 and $52. The tests may be available for reimbursement with a flexible spending account, health savings account or health reimbursement arrangement. Are there any downsides or risks of using ovulation strips?Ovulation test strips are a safe, effective and inexpensive way to find out when you’re ovulating and maximize your chances for conceiving. They’re highly accurate when used correctly, so the only real downside is that they’re not 100 percent foolproof. A test could potentially indicate a false positive if LH levels surge without ovulation occurring, especially if you have PCOS or are taking certain medications. And you could end up testing too early or too late — and missing your ovulation window altogether — if your periods are highly irregular. Ovulation test strips are an easy, accurate tool that can help you pinpoint when you’re ovulating and maximize your chances for conception. But they may be more accurate for some women than others. If you have very irregular periods or PCOS, or are taking medication, talk with your OB/GYN to find out whether ovulation predictor kits are the best option for you and what you can do to make your test results as accurate as possible.
If you are a super savvy TTC-er, you have probably heard about women using their OPKs (ovulation predictor kits) as pregnancy tests. On the other hand, if you are new to the TTC community, you might be wondering how this is possible. While it is certainly possible to use an ovulation test as a pregnancy test, it is not necessarily the most advisable method for testing for pregnancy. Here is the low-down on using an ovulation test as a pregnancy test: An ovulation test works by detecting the surge in luteinizing hormone (LH) that precedes ovulation. Pregnancy tests work by detecting the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in your urine. Interestingly, hCG and LH are both known scientifically as glycoproteins, which simply means that these hormones are made up of a protein with a sugar attached to it. Of even greater interest for this discussion, is the fact that the protein parts of hCG and LH look very similar. So similar, in fact, a standard ovulation test (OPK) is unable to distinguish between LH and hCG in your urine. Therefore, if you have enough of either of the two hormones (LH or hCG) in your urine at the time you test using an OPK, you will get a positive result on the OPK. In theory, therefore, a positive result on an ovulation test taken after you have missed a period could definitely indicate that you are pregnant. But, while it might be tempting to use your extra ovulation test as a pregnancy test, most OPKs are not as sensitive as an early detection pregnancy test, which means that you will run the risk of getting a false negative…so, even if you are pregnant, your OPK will not be sensitive enough to detect the small amounts of hCG that are present in your urine in the first few days after conception. If you suspect that you have conceived, the quickest, most accurate way to confirm pregnancy is to use an early detection pregnancy test More Pregnancy Test Articles >Back to Article Library
If you’re using an ovulation test, chances are you’re trying to get pregnant, or you’re tracking your cycle to try and avoid pregnancy. Because ovulation tests can be helpful when trying to get—or avoid getting—pregnant, you may be wondering if ovulation tests can also detect pregnancy. The short answer is: maybe, but not reliably. Read on to learn why your ovulation test strip might test positive if you’re pregnant but why you shouldn’t rely on it as a pregnancy test. If you’re pregnant, your ovulation urine test might still show a positive result. (Positive test results can look like a second test line in addition to the control line, or sometimes a smiley face.) But, that doesn’t mean the test is looking for signs of pregnancy. Instead, it’s looking for signs that you’re ovulating. This can lead to a positive result because pregnancy hormones can look a lot like ovulation hormones. Ovulation tests work by looking for high levels of a hormone called luteinizing hormone (LH). About halfway through your menstrual cycle, your brain boosts your LH levels as a signal to your ovaries to get ready to release an egg (ovulation) (Holesh, 2021). This LH surge, which happens a few days before you ovulate, is what the ovulation test is looking for—so a positive result means that you should ovulate within the next few days (these are your “fertile days”). The ovulation test might also be positive when you’re pregnant because a pregnancy-specific hormone, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), behaves a lot like LH on a molecular level (Cole, 2010). And while at-home ovulation testers are great at predicting ovulation, they’re ultimately a pretty simple tool. They don’t have the kind of sensitivity it takes to distinguish LH and hCG. So, this means that if you’re pregnant and you take an ovulation test, it might show a false positive because it’s accidentally identifying high hCG levels, not LH. This does not mean that it’s accurately detecting your pregnancy. It is simply that the test does not always differentiate between the two hormones. However, if the test does correctly differentiate between LH and hCG—meaning that you may be pregnant, but the test is negative because LH is low and the test doesn’t recognize hCG—then, in this case, the test will show a negative result, even though you’re pregnant. These discrepancies are why ovulation tests should not be used to detect a pregnancy. Ovulation tests are designed to be used when you aren’t pregnant (or don’t think you are). This is how they can most reliably identify the correct hormonal shifts and predict that you’re going to ovulate. The time of the month to use an ovulation test is about halfway through your cycle (a few days before you might ovulate). Cycle length can vary from person to person, with normal cycles ranging from 21–35 days. Women with irregular cycles can use ovulation test kits, too. And whether you have a normal or irregular cycle, it may take a few months of testing to determine when your ovulation window occurs to time testing properly (Bull, 2019). A good rule of thumb is to start testing on day 10 or 11 of your cycle (day 1 being the first day of your period) (Su, 2017). As for what time of day is best to use an ovulation test, it’s ideal to do it in the morning. While you can take an ovulation test at any time of day, your hormones are most concentrated in your morning urine, making it easier for an ovulation test to pick up on any LH surges in your hormone levels (Su, 2017). If you have any reason to think you might be pregnant—whether you’re actively trying to get pregnant, you had unprotected sex, you were late taking your birth control, or you missed your period—taking a pregnancy test is a good idea. Ovulation will generally occur within 48 hours of a positive ovulation test. Remember that everyone’s cycle is different, and a test showing an LH surge does not guarantee that you’ll ovulate. Even so, studies have shown a high level of accuracy for urinary ovulation tests identifying the LH surge that comes about 48 hours before ovulation (Su, 2017). You can track your ovulation—and predict your fertile window, or the time that it’s most likely you’ll get pregnant—using cues from your body as well as ovulation tests, including:
The best way to know if you’re pregnant is by taking a pregnancy test. At-home pregnancy tests are widely available over the counter or online. It may feel excessive—not to mention expensive—to get two kinds of tests, but using tests for the purpose they’re designed for is the best way to get the most accurate and reliable results. So, use an ovulation predictor kit when you’re trying to figure out when you’re ovulating to achieve (or avoid) pregnancy, and use a pregnancy test if you think you might be pregnant.
|