OPK question

FLsquirrel80 · September 2014

I feel dumb asking lots of questions that I should probably know, but you all are so helpful, Anyway, I have PCOS and I've been on Letrozole CD 3-7 to help with ovulation. I finished that on Friday and took my first OPK on Sunday (CD 9). This was my first time taking an OPK. I tested by peeing in a cup and then putting the stick in the cup for 15 seconds. After I finished, I went on and took a shower (didn't know it would go blank after 8 minutes). After my shower, I saw that it was blank so I took it out and put it back in (dumb I know) and there was a smiley face. Ovulating on CD 9 is too early right? I tested the next day and it was negative. Should I continue testing or is this month a bust? Thank you for letting me ask my dumb questions.

LindseyM2012 · September 2014

OPKs are quite unreliable for us PCOSers. OPKs detect a threshold level of LH. That level is calibrated to a woman without hormonal issues and is set high enough to constitute a surge in LH, which means she is about to ovulate. The typical woman with PCOS has a higher baseline level of LH. That means, a random fluctuation in LH could trigger the OPK without being enough of a fluctuation to constitute an LH surge. (I hope I explained that clearly....I need more coffee!). Bottom line is that OPKs and PCOS are not friends; you will get false positives. Fertility medications also mess with the reliability of OPKs.

My RE told me to not use OPKs for these reasons, and my own research backs up that recommendation. Are you being monitored on Letrozole? If so, let the ultrasound and bloodwork tell you when you ovulate.

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