What should I do if my progesterone level is low even though I am not pregnant?

Women often experience low progesterone levels. The main reason for this is luteal insufficiency, because progesterone is secreted by the corpus luteum. If there is a problem with the corpus luteum function, the secretion of progesterone will decrease. Under normal circumstances, the level of progesterone will increase after pregnancy, but if a woman is not pregnant and the progesterone level is obviously low, how should it be solved?

What should I do if my progesterone level is low even though I am not pregnant?

First of all, experts clearly pointed out that if a woman's progesterone level is too low, it will affect her normal conception. Even if she becomes pregnant, it will seriously affect the normal development of the fetus in the womb and may even cause miscarriage.

Secondly, there are many reasons for low progesterone in women, among which luteal insufficiency is the most common cause and the main factor causing insufficient progesterone secretion in women. If the corpus luteum declines prematurely, it will cause abnormal changes in the endometrium, thereby affecting the normal implantation of the fertilized egg and causing miscarriage or premature birth in women.

Moreover, when a woman's progesterone level is low, bleeding will occur, which has a great impact on whether a woman can become pregnant normally. If insufficient progesterone secretion occurs during pregnancy, it will also lead to adverse decidual reaction of pregnancy, thereby affecting the implantation and development of the fertilized egg. Therefore, if a female friend has low progesterone during pregnancy, she must first ensure sufficient rest during pregnancy, stay in bed as much as possible, and strengthen nutrition, have regular gynecological examinations, etc.

Can low progesterone cause miscarriage?

Theoretically, progesterone is needed for the egg and sperm to combine to form an embryo because it helps stimulate changes in the uterus during the reproductive process and can increase blood flow to the blood vessels and tissues of the reproductive system, which then promotes embryonic development. If the progesterone level drops significantly in the early stages of pregnancy, it may easily cause the embryo that has not implanted stably in the uterus to stop developing. In the case of abnormal embryos (embryos with Down syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities), the embryo will secrete insufficient hormones and progesterone will be very low.

Luteal insufficiency may be a cause of miscarriage, but there are no good indicators to diagnose luteal insufficiency. A single blood progesterone measurement is not sufficient to represent the level throughout the pregnancy, and the blood level may not be equal to the local uterine level. Moreover, the progesterone secreted by the human body is metabolized very quickly. If the blood is not checked in time after being drawn, the test results will be inaccurate. Therefore, the combined examination of progesterone and HCG is used clinically. If only the progesterone level is low and the HCG level is normal, it is probably an examination error and the patient should be rechecked or the HCG result should be taken as the main result.

Therefore, in the absence of vaginal bleeding and normal HCG, low progesterone will not necessarily lead to fetal arrest or miscarriage. But if you have a miscarriage, progesterone will definitely be low because the body no longer needs hormone secretion to support embryo development.

According to surveys, 20% to 50% of pregnant women with low progesterone levels have not experienced symptoms of miscarriage, but low progesterone levels still require close observation.