Hormone Therapy to Get Pregnant

Hormones play a crucial role in conception. Couples who experience difficulty getting pregnant should consider undergoing hormone testing to determine whether or not inadequate hormone levels may be causing infertility. Developments in hormone therapy may increase chances of conceiving a child if a hormonal imbalance or deficiency is found.

Understand Fertility

• The reproductive organs are not the only factors involved in conception. Hormones regulate these organs, stimulating lubrication and the release of eggs. If reproductive hormones are not being released in sufficient amounts or at the right time, infertility can result. Of special importance are the gonadotropins, which regulate the development of sex organs and the production of sperm and eggs. Two gonadotropins are especially important for conception: human follicle stimulating hormone (hFSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH).

hFSH

• Human follicle stimulating hormone (hFSH) stimulates the secretion of estrogen and is especially important for women. It causes the follicles of the ovaries to mature and contributes to the menstrual cycle. It also encourages the development and production of sperm cells in men.
  The hFSH is released in high amounts during the first 13 days of a woman's menstrual cycle. Women who are experiencing infertility may increase chances of pregnancy by taking supplements of hFSH. These are available by prescription and are usually injected.

LH

• Luteinizing hormone (LH) causes the secretion of testosterone, progesterone and estradiol, which are all essential to reproduction. In males, testosterone contributes to sperm production. In women, progesterone is necessary throughout pregnancy. If LH is deficient, these crucial hormones will not be released in adequate amounts.
  LH is also available by prescription, and must also be injected. LH is usually injected around the 11th day of a woman's menstrual cycle in order to trigger ovulation.

Kisspeptin

• Recent studies have shown that a hormone known as kisspeptin plays a vital role in the reproductive cycle, particularly for women. Professor Allan Herbison of the University of Otago, leader of a 2008 study on the role of kisspeptin in fertility treatment, expressed optimism about the hormone's future development and use. "This is an exciting finding, as people have been trying to find out precisely how the brain controls ovulation for more than 30 years. This work now reveals a crucial link in the brain circuitry responsible." Researchers are still studying the hormone's potential uses in hormone therapy.