Cutting Edge Test For Fertility And Menopause Foreseeing When Menopause Takes Place And When Fertility Starts To Reduce

Fertility and menopause go together, and it is a well-known thing that fertility dips in the years that precede the menopause, so predicting the age at which menopause is likely to commence is a very useful thing.

According to a twelve year Iranian study of 266 women, a new test which calculates a hormone called anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) found it was feasible to determine the age of menopause by evaluating the levels of AMH.

AMH is manufactured in the tissues of the ovaries and handles the development of follicles in the ovaries from which eggs grow.

The study was carried out at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran and was led by Dr Fahimeh Ramezani Tehrani. In the study, 266 women aged between 20 years and 49 years old were monitored through blood samples and physical examinations at three year time intervals over a 12 year period. Researchers then worked out a mathematical model for estimating the age at menopause from AMH levels in the blood. They found that using this procedure, they were able to foresee the age at which women reached menopause to within an average of just 4 months.

This can certainly be particularly good for choosing women who may have an early menopause and who could then prepare on making a family accordingly.

The menopause test will not forecast when women may lose their fertility. Generally this takes place approximately a decade in advance of menopause. Nevertheless, if physicians have an idea of the moment women goes into menopause, they can calculate pretty nearly when they will run out of eggs. Scientists say the test could be particularly helpful in pinpointing women who might go into the menopause early, for example, in their late 40s or earlier instead of their mid 50s.

However, you should also be aware that there are other causes that can impact fertility for instance the partner's sperm and other clinical issues like scarred tubes, so the Menopause test should not be relied on as the single predictor of a reduction in fertility.