HCG During Pregnancy - Tests And Norms, Role In The Body

Last updated 22 January 2020 at 08:07 PM

Reading time: 4 minutes

Often referred to as a pregnancy hormone, it is responsible for hormonal processes in women while they are pregnant. Both women and men can take tests. How the research is conducted and what are the results, read in this article.

Content

• 1 What hCG shows, and its significance
• 2 How to donate blood for hCG testing
• 3 Types of HCG analysis

• 4 What should be hCG?

  • 4.1 Patterns of hCG during pregnancy
  • 4.2 Reasons for deviations from the norm of hCG
  • 4.3 Similar articles

What hCG shows, and its meaning

It stands for human chorionic gonadotropin. Created by a fertilized egg. By penetrating the wall of the uterus, it develops the placenta. An interesting fact is that chorionic gonadotropin is also manifested in cancers in both sexes, this analysis is useful in oncology. Today, some countries do not issue drugs containing this substance without a prescription.

It has two units of measurement: a - alpha, and b - beta. Alpha is the same as thyroid-stimulating / luteinizing hormone, but beta is unique. And for this reason, the b unit plays an important role in the meaning of the analysis. In the blood, beta can be detected only 7-8 days after fertilization. After a week, there should be no hCG in the blood and urine.

HCG functions:

1. stimulates the cells responsible for testosterone in men;
2. prepares the immune system of women for the adoption of the fetus;
3. improves fetal function;
4. rapidly produces estrogen and progesterone in the early stages of pregnancy.

If the level of human chorionic gonadotropin is elevated, it may indicate pregnancy, as well as diabetes or cancer. Measuring hormone levels at different stages of pregnancy helps the doctor identify an ectopic pregnancy. As for men who have it above normal, it may be a testicular tumor. Lowering the level can also cause unpleasant consequences.

How to donate blood for hCG testing

The result is determined by venous blood (or urine, but this approach is not always accurate), which is better to take in the morning, without having eaten anything, about 10 hours before delivery. If suddenly, a person uses other drugs (therapeutic or prophylactic), it is better to inform the doctor in advance. The indicators are mainly influenced by drugs containing this hormone. Other medicines do not distort the indicators.

Also, analyzes are carried out after abortions to make sure whether the ovum is completely removed, if not, the indicators will be higher than normal. In such cases, this procedure should be carried out 2 days after the operation.

The timing of the results will depend on the medical center in which they were delivered, but if you need it urgently, you can agree on this. Usually the results can be found in a day. You can get them on your hands, or through a profile on the Internet, on the clinic's website, or by email. mail.

Types of HCG analysis

There are two types of analysis:

• general - done for early detection of pregnancy, since the test strip is not able to show the result. The substance increases up to 11 weeks, and then decreases.
• free beta - assesses the risk of Down syndrome or Edwards syndrome in the fetus. A positive result does not give an accurate chance of developing fetal abnormalities. Also, this analysis is indicative for testicular and trophoblastic neoplasms.

If women have, or have had problems with pregnancy, as well as used different drugs, they should notify the doctor, since the conclusions may not be accurate. Very few girls get false results due to hormone malfunction or cancer. Even if there is a pregnancy, the tests may be negative, but this is rare.

What should be hCG?

Let's see what is the rate of hCG without pregnancy, with it, and in men:

• in healthy men, the blood level will be up to 2.5 mU / ml.
• in healthy, not pregnant women, indicators are from 0 to 5 mU / ml.

During pregnancy, the level changes every 7-14 days. Here is a table of the level of hCG rates in women carrying a fetus, a schedule for weeks:

A week	Hormone level
1	20-150 mU / ml
2-3	100-4870 mU / ml
4	2500-82000 mU / ml
five	up to 151,000 mU / ml
6	233,000 mU / ml
7-10	20,900-291,000 mU / ml
sixteen	6150-103 000 mU / ml
20	4730-80,000 mU / ml
21-39	2700-78000 mU / ml

HCG table by day:

Days after ovulation	Hormone level
	Higher	Below
Exactly after the first 7 days	ten	2
8	18	3
nine	21	five
ten	26	8
eleven	45	eleven
12	65	17
13	105	22
fourteen	170	29
15	270	39
sixteen	400	68
17	580	110
18	840	220
nineteen	1300	360
20	2000	510
21	3000	740
22	4800	1040
23	6100	1300
24	7700	1730
25	9700	2300
26	15,500	4100
27	19400	5300
28	27200	7000
29	32,000	8600
thirty	40,000	10 300
31	60,000	11 300
32	62,000	12 600
33	67,000	13,500
34	70,000	15200
35	73,000	16,000
36	77,000	18,000
37	82,000	20300
38	86,000	21,000
39	92,000	22,000
40	107,000	24,000
41	116,000	25400
42	127,000	27,000

If the blood HCG is higher than normal in men and unfertilized women, it is possible that both develop kidney, intestinal, lung, egg (male) or uterine disease. Low hCG indicators, especially in those who are in position, require an urgent medical examination. A decrease in the level of more than 50% indicates problems with the fetus, and its possible loss at a later date.

Patterns of hCG during pregnancy

It is worth remembering some of the nuances when changing hormone indicators:

1. the determination of its level should be done 7 days after ovulation, since until this moment, the concentration will be too low to determine;
2. from the beginning of conception and up to 10 weeks, the level of xg rises every two days;
3. from 10 to 20 weeks, the highest concentration of human chorionic gonadotropin occurs, which then gradually decreases.

You should not rely heavily on numbers, so a doctor's consultation will be necessary, especially if there are deviations in the points above.

Reasons for deviations from the norm of hCG

Deviation from the norm can be both natural and pathological in nature. When a person is in a position, the doctor should draw conclusions and only. There are lists of reasons that cause deviations of the chorionic gonadotropin in both directions.

Understated Harbingers:

• attachment of the egg outside the uterine cavity;
• possible miscarriage;
• prolonged pregnancy;
• retardation of the development of the fetus or its freezing.

A decrease or increase in the hormone, maybe even due to the incorrect conclusion of the doctor, as a result of which, the person is sent for treatment that he does not need at all. This is of course a rarity, but it's still worth knowing.

Overrated Harbingers:

• gestosis / toxicosis;
• cystic drift;
• multiple pregnancy;
• diabetes;
• the use of drugs containing hCG.

Indicators above zero in men and non-pregnant women may be due to:

• tumors in the gastrointestinal tract and testicles;
• chorionic carcinoma;
• education in the organs.

There are also options when pregnancy is not confirmed by the presence of chorionic gonadotropin: when the test is performed earlier than 9 days after ovulation, and when the pregnancy is ectopic.