Ovarian Monitor
The Ovarian Monitor is a home device that measures two hormone products in urine. Estrone glucuronide rises before ovulation. Pregnanediol glucuronide rises after it. A woman runs the test and reads it against her chart.
Home results generally agreed with lab assays in validation work, though in about half of cycles the monitor showed the estrogen rise up to three days late.1 The monitor confirms what a woman already sees. No more than 2 in 100 women taught the Billings Ovulation Method need it.2
It also shows how wide normal runs. Of 113 cycles judged normal, 40 percent had patterns more complex than the textbook curve. Twenty-two of the 113 carried some luteal phase defect.3
Cited in this entry
- Blackwell LF, Brown JB, Vigil P, Gross B, Sufi S, d'Arcangues C. Hormonal monitoring of ovarian activity using the Ovarian Monitor, part I. Validation of home and laboratory results obtained during ovulatory cycles by comparison with radioimmunoassay. Steroids. 2003. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12798498/
- Billings JJ. The validation of the Billings ovulation method by laboratory research and field trials. Acta Europaea fertilitatis. 1991. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1746210/
- Blackwell LF, Vigil P, Cooke DG, d'Arcangues C, Brown JB. Monitoring of ovarian activity by daily measurement of urinary excretion rates of oestrone glucuronide and pregnanediol glucuronide using the Ovarian Monitor, Part III: variability of normal menstrual cycle profiles. Human Reproduction (Oxford, England). 2013. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24170744/
This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult an RRM clinician or healthcare provider for guidance specific to your situation.
