Day 3/Day 21 blood tests - help!

[gembay]

Can anyone advise me - I have booked to have my day 3 blood test on Monday but as my cycles are a bit irregualr I had to kind of guess when my day 3 would be, so as sods law would have it I've come on today which would mean that Monday is day 5, does anyone know if this will be ok? Or shall I try and get a test tomorrow so its day 2? Help, Im confused! my docs are closed thurs afternoons so cant ask them, plus I think I trust you lovely mnetters more than my docs receptionist anyway ....

Thank you!

Hi,

If you can get the test done tomorrow then all well and good. Monday would probably be okay but these are better done early in the cycle.

The day 2 is a standard test done to check and compare your LH (luteinising hormone) level against that of your FSH (follicle stimulation hormone) level. LH and FSH are two very important hormones; thes kickstart the ovulation process. Sometimes these two levels are out of sync particularly if the menstrual cycle is irregular (a common culprit in that regard is a condition called polycystic ovaries).

ENSURE that the level of both LH and FSH are compared against one another as they can look okay if only looked at separately.

BTW blood tests can be done according to calendar days if the cycle is irregular. Such tests should be repeated.

Thanks so much for that info, its really helpful. I will try to get an appt for the blood test tomorrow. It's actually PCOS I am being tested for - I went to the docs as I was worried about it so she recommened these tests along with an ultrasound.

Hi,

It is doubly important then that the levels of LH and FSH are both tested and compared against each other around day 2. This is what this test is all about.

Usually with PCOS there is an imbalance of LH to FSH. Such tests should be repeated as well.

I would also be now looking for a referral to a gynae - PCOS is a condition that more often than not needs a gynae's expertise.

Hopefully you will get your appt for an ultrasound soon. They should do an internal ultrasound scan ideally as an external one won't give much detail. It can also take a skilled sonographer to spot polycystic ovaries as the cystic follicles associated with PCOS are very small and can disappear - only to be replaced by further cystic follicles. Also the polycystic ovary can appear larger than normal size. A normal sixe ovary is around the size of a walnut.

HTH