Ovarian Reserve: What It Is and How It Impacts Your Fertility
Women are born with a fixed number of eggs; this number naturally decreases over time. This is called an ovarian reserve.
The ovarian reserve plays an important role in fertility. Many women don’t think about their ovarian reserve until they start planning for a baby. But understanding it earlier can help you make informed decisions about your reproductive health.
In this blog, we’ll discuss what it is, how it impacts fertility, and what you can do to check and improve it.
What is an Ovarian Reserve?
Ovarian reserve refers to the number and quality of eggs (oocytes) a woman has in her ovaries.
When a woman is born, she has all the eggs she will ever have, and the number decreases as she ages.
A woman is born with around 2 million eggs but loses them over time. By the time puberty starts, most women have around 400,000 eggs left.
In their late thirties, this number drops to about 27,000. The number continues to decrease until only about 1,000 eggs remain at menopause.
Ovarian reserve helps doctors understand a woman’s fertility potential.
Doctors often measure ovarian reserve with tests to better understand a woman’s chances of getting pregnant.
Knowing your ovarian reserve can give you a better understanding of your fertility and help guide decisions about family planning or potential treatments if you’re facing difficulty getting pregnant.
However, it’s important to remember that ovarian reserve is just one factor in fertility, and a woman’s ability to conceive is influenced by many other factors, including overall health, partner fertility, and lifestyle.
What Causes a Low Ovarian Reserve?
- Age
- Genetic disorders
- Previous Surgeries
- Losing one or both ovaries
- Autoimmune disorders
- Cancer treatments like chemotherapy or radiation
- Environmental Factors
Ovarian Reserve Role in Fertility
Poor ovarian reserve means a woman has fewer eggs available in her ovaries.
Poor ovarian reserve doesn’t always cause infertility. Young women with a low ovarian reserve can still get pregnant naturally. However, it affects fertility treatments like IVF (In Vitro Fertilization).
When a woman has a poor ovarian reserve, fewer eggs are collected after ovarian stimulation, even if doctors give her higher doses of medication.
The two main factors that impact the success of fertility treatments are the number of eggs (ovarian reserve) and the woman’s age.
So, understanding a woman’s ovarian reserve helps doctors predict your chances of pregnancy and guide treatment options.
Ovarian Reserve Tests
To get a clearer picture, doctors usually need additional tests, like hormone checks or ultrasounds, to assess your ovaries more accurately. Below are the common ovarian reserve tests:
1. Antral Follicle Count (AFC) Test or Pelvic Transvaginal Sonography:
This test uses an ultrasound to count the small follicles (tiny sacs where eggs are stored) in the ovaries. More follicles usually mean a higher ovarian reserve. It’s done by trans vaginal scan mostly on day 2 of menses.
2. Follicle-Stimulating Hormone (FSH) Test:
FSH is a hormone that helps regulate the growth of eggs. A blood test is done early in the menstrual cycle (usually on day 3) to check how much FSH is in your blood. High FSH levels can indicate a lower ovarian reserve because the body may try harder to stimulate the ovaries.
3. Luteinizing Hormone (LH) Test:
LH is another hormone that helps the ovaries release eggs. This blood test is often done along with the FSH test to evaluate hormone levels, which can give insight into ovarian health and fertility.
4. Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) Test:
AMH is a hormone produced by the follicles in the ovaries. A blood test measures the level of AMH, which can help estimate the number of eggs left in the ovaries.
These tests are performed to check the health and number of eggs in the ovaries, which can help doctors understand fertility and guide treatment options.
The Role of Ovarian Reserve Testing
Ovarian reserve testing helps you understand your fertility potential, especially if you’re thinking about IVF or egg freezing. Here’s how it can guide you:
1. Fertility Counseling: Ovarian reserve tests help your doctor understand your situation. It helps the doctor give you better advice and explore treatment options.
2. Fertility Treatment Planning: Knowing your AMH and AFC levels helps your doctor create a treatment plan. It helps adjust medication doses and predict how well your body will respond to treatments like ovarian stimulation or IVF.
3. Egg Freezing: If you’re thinking about freezing your eggs for later, testing your ovarian reserve gives you an idea of how many eggs can be retrieved and stored so you can have realistic expectations for the pregnancy.
How to Improve Ovarian Reserve?
You can’t increase the number of eggs you have because you’re born with all the eggs you’ll ever have. However, you can improve the quality of your eggs by making healthy lifestyle choices. Some things that can help include:
- Eating nutritious foods and taking all vitamins.
- Getting enough sleep.
- Quitting smoking and avoiding alcohol.
These good habits can support better egg quality over time.
Conclusion
Understanding ovarian reserve is essential if you’re planning to start a family or want to check your fertility. Knowing what affects ovarian reserve and getting the proper tests can help you make better choices about your health.
Age, lifestyle, and certain tests can give you insights into your ovarian reserve. While you can’t increase the number of eggs you have, living healthy and seeking medical help can improve ovarian health.
We recommend consulting with fertility specialists at Motherhood Hospital, the best fertility center in Ahmedabad, for personalized advice and support.
It’s never too early to think about your ovarian health and take steps to protect it.
