Ovulatory dysfunction can be suspected if there is irregularity in periods to our cycle and this can be investigated and diagnosed further via transvaginal ultrasound scans as well as by biochemistry investigations that are going to be requested by your reproductive medicine specialists.
Ovulatory dysfunction is diagnosed probably initially by a blood test. The blood test is called a day 21 progesterone and that’s looking for raised progesterone levels following ovulation. Once you’ve ovulated, the casing that keeps, that holds the egg prior to ovulation is called the corpus luteum and as that dies off it creates progesterone and that’s what the test is looking for – it’s looking for this increase in progesterone levels in your bloodstream. That’s one way of diagnosing whether or not you’ve ovulated. Sometimes this can be difficult reading because if it’s not done on the right day. That can perhaps tell you that the result is that you’ve not ovulated but often it’s just down to a timing error, for example, the test is called a day 21 progesterone but it’s only accurate of taking on day 21 in a 28 day cycle. If your cycle is shorter or longer than that, then you need to have it done seven days prior to your next period which can cause problems in identifying when that might be. That’s the main way. Another way is that you can have a scan to have a look to see whether you have any mature follicles, whether there are any reasons why you might not be ovulating, for example, or cystic ovarian syndrome. Those tests are generally going to help you understand whether or not you’re ovulating.
