Hormone treatment: process and chances of success

In about 30 to 40% of the women affected, the unfulfilled desire to have children is due to hormonal disorders. In this case, hormone treatment enables normal ovulation, so that women can become pregnant naturally or as part of artificial insemination . At the same time, cycle monitoring should take place in order to be able to determine the best time for sexual intercourse or artificial insemination and to rule out the production of several egg cells and thus a multiple pregnancy .

Goals of hormone treatment

Hormone treatment is used in three phases of the menstrual cycle to ensure successful ovulation:

• Stabilizing the menstrual cycle : Hormone treatment can be used to stabilize an unbalanced menstrual cycle. This is the case, for example, with PCO syndrome, yellow body weakness and many other hormonal fertility disorders.
• Stimulation of oocyte maturation : Ovarian stimulation, i.e. stimulation of oocyte maturation, is now an integral part of almost all fertility treatments. The best-known hormone preparation used in this context is clomiphene. But the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and human menopausal gonadotropin (HMG) are also used in this phase. The doctor then checks the development of the egg cells at frequent intervals as part of cycle monitoring.
• Triggering of ovulation : By administering further hormones, ovulation is triggered at a specific time. Here, hormones are used that trigger ovulation, such as human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG). But hormones that delay ovulation are also used to prevent premature ovulation and thus gain more planning security. Especially with the methods of artificial insemination, this is often not left to nature, because it increases the chances of success of the treatment if the gynecologist knows exactly the best time for insemination or removal of egg cells for in-vitro fertilization.

course of hormone treatment

Before hormone therapy begins, a doctor examines the woman thoroughly. The hormone treatment then usually begins on the third day after the start of the menstrual period. The hormones can be administered in the form of tablets or injections. The maturing of the egg cell is regularly monitored by the gynecologist with the help of cycle monitoring and ultrasound in order to be able to precisely determine the time of ovulation. Either the ovulation is simply awaited, then the woman can do it alone or with her doctor with the help of natural methods or an ovulation testcheck the timing of ovulation. Or the gynecologist triggers ovulation by administering another hormone preparation as soon as the egg cell has reached the right size. In both cases, a couple receives a recommendation for the best time for insemination.

Hormone treatment as part of artificial insemination

Hormone treatment is also carried out in most cases as part of artificial insemination. The goal is to significantly increase the chances of success by generating more fertilizable egg cells through hormonal stimulation and gaining better planning security through control of the ovulation date. This increases the chances of success for both insemination and in vitro fertilization. Because with an insemination then several eggs are available, which can be fertilized by the injected sperm. With in-vitro fertilization, more egg cells can be removed from the woman during the puncture in order to then fertilize them outside the body. However, according to German legislation, only a maximum of three fertilized egg cells may be reinserted into the woman’s body.

Chances of success of hormone treatment

In the course of hormone treatment without subsequent artificial insemination, about every third woman becomes pregnant. However, the individual probability of success is strongly dependent on the existing hormonal disorder.

Risks of hormone treatment

• One of the feared side effects of hormone treatment is the so-called overstimulation syndrome. The ovaries are overstimulated and very large and many follicles are formed. Cyst formation may occur.
• The probability of a multiple pregnancy also increases due to the strong stimulation.
• In addition to the overstimulation syndrome, typical symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes, headaches or depressive moods can occur, especially when taking preparations such as clomiphene.
• In addition, other organs, such as the uterus, can be negatively influenced by the hormone effect, so that changes in the cervical mucus can occur. The sperm cannot penetrate or implantation of the embryo is not possible.

Further information

You can find a lot more information about the natural and “artificial” way of getting pregnant in our “ Getting pregnant ” and “ Artificial insemination ” sections. You can find the causes of unwanted childlessness and how to deal with it in our “ Infertility ” section.