[roseblossom]

I ordered a comprehensive female hormone panel, but it did not include a few things I thought I needed... Any help is appreciated. This was day 11 of my cycle. I do not see my gynecologist until April.

[peggy]

On which cycle day was the test done?

[roseblossom]

On which cycle day was the test done?

Day 11. The labs told me to take the test between days 5-12. Sorry, I should have mentioned that.

[peggy]

But that's not correct.

Progesterone should be measured only between cylce day 20-22 if you have a 28 day cycle. Because then the Progesterone level is on it's highest. To measure in follicular phase is completely useless.

[peggy]

The 21 day progesterone test is a blood test designed to measure your progesterone levels at day 21 of your menstrual cycle or, more precisely, 7 days post-ovulation. It checks that they have risen sufficiently to indicate a) that you have ovulated and b) that your uterine lining is developing sufficiently to sustain a pregnancy.

It's important to realise that if you don't ovulate until day 16, having the test on day 21 would be too early. It should really be taken 7 days post ovulation, which for convenience is called day 21, which is for an average 28 day cycle.

If your period does not arrive 6-8 days after the test, you probably had your dates wrong and will need to try again

http://kayoz.typepad.com/blog/21-day-pro...evels.html

[roseblossom]

But that's not correct.

Progesterone should be measured only between cylce day 20-22 if you have a 28 day cycle. Because then the Progesterone level is on it's highest. To measure in follicular phase is completely useless.

I have a 31 day cycle if that makes any difference. When I called the lab I was on days 20-22 and was told that I shouldn't have the tests done then. They told me to wait to have the tests done between days 5-12 because hormones peak during the luteal phase.

They are supposed to be medical professionals. Is it better to rely on information I retrieve from the Internet?

[peggy]

If you have a 31 day cycle, then the test should be done on cycle day 24.

I worked in a lab in Germany and I know for sure when to test for Progesterone.

Check out this chart, you will see that Progesterone is at it's highest in luteal phase, one week after ovulation resp. one week before menstruation. You need to know how much your Progesterone value can rise in luteal phase. To measure in follicular phase just doesn't make any sense, because as you can see in the diagram, Progesterone is low from cycle day 1-13 (without any fluctuations). But you want to know if you produce enough Progesterone in luteal phase and then you can also calculate the Progesterone / Estradiol ratio and you will know if you are estrogen dominant or not. Every woman has the same low Progesterone value in follicular phase, but not every woman can produce enough Progesterone in luteal phase. Some women produce just 3 ng/mL and others produce 20 ng/mL and you want to know how much you can produce.

[roseblossom]

Thanks for all of the information! Well, darnit... I have no idea why they misguided me like that. I'm not going to get the tests again, they were too expensive. I'll treat my PMS by experimenting, I think.

[roseblossom]

Very frustrating. Sorry if I seemed irritable, it was not meant to be directed at you. Do you have comments on anything else besides the progesterone?

[peggy]

Sorry to hear that you spent so much money on the test.

As for the other values. DHEAS seems fine. Did they not test Testosterone?

If the LH:FSH ratio is >2 then it can be a sign for PCOS. Your ratio is exactly 2, so not sure if that is still ok. Maybe ask your doctor for an ultrasound.

Estradiol seems to be fine.

Hope this helps. :-)