What does the female luteal phase mean?

The female luteal phase refers to the day before menstruation after ovulation. At this time, the ovaries will be affected by the corpus luteum and secrete progesterone, which can maintain the endometrium and facilitate the implantation of the fertilized egg. If the corpus luteum function is insufficient, this will lead to insufficient progesterone secretion, which can easily lead to female infertility! For luteal insufficiency, it is necessary to diagnose and treat it in time.

Secretes progesterone, estrogen, and relaxin. In women with luteal insufficiency, progesterone secretion is mostly insufficient. Progesterone mainly acts on the endometrium, causing secretory changes in the uterus, which is very necessary for the implantation of the fertilized egg and the maintenance of pregnancy.

If progesterone is not secreted sufficiently, the secretory changes of the endometrium will be adversely affected. In clinical practice, through endometrial biopsy, it is often found that some infertile women have poor secretory function, which is not conducive to the implantation of the fertilized egg. Even if the fertilized egg implants, miscarriage may occur due to insufficient progesterone secretion. According to statistics, 3-4% of infertile women are caused by luteal insufficiency.

What factors cause poor corpus luteum formation and development and insufficient progesterone secretion? This may be related to the follicular development during the follicular phase. Recent experiments have demonstrated that increased serum prolactin levels can lead to luteal insufficiency. In vitro experiments have also confirmed that high concentrations of prolactin can inhibit the secretion of progesterone by ovarian granulosa cells.

The diagnosis of luteal insufficiency can be preliminarily determined based on basal body temperature. If the basal body temperature does not rise high enough, the temperature difference between before and after ovulation is less than 0.5°C (normally the body temperature rises by about 0.5°C after ovulation); the number of days with elevated body temperature (luteal phase) decreases, such as less than 11 days, there is a high possibility of luteal insufficiency.

At the same time, a clear diagnosis can be made by combining endometrial biopsy and judging the degree and grade of glandular secretion. Hospitals with the necessary conditions can measure progesterone levels. If the peak progesterone level is less than 10 ng/mL, it can be considered as luteal insufficiency. What is the female luteal phase - the normal value is generally above 14 ng/ml. The diagnosis of corpus luteum function should be made with caution, and generally more than two cycles of observation are required to confirm the diagnosis.