Can Clomiphene affect the length of a cycle

There is consensus among physicians and other medical experts that for many women, their menstrual cycles can somewhat be lengthened due their use of clomiphene. This consensus completely answers the question that’s posed above. It should be noted however that the condition is only a temporary one which will only affect those under treatment. When compared, Clomid cycles are slightly longer than the average menstrual cycle even if the same woman didn’t take clomiphene.

Brief medical history on clomiphene

Clomiphene, also called Clomid, or Serophene is a drug medication that’s mainly used for treating infertility.

In the beginning it was developed as a treatment for anovulation.

This drug medication normally induces ovulation in women who are unable to generate and release or ovulate their eggs from their own efforts, especially women who suffer from polycystic ovaries.

Clomiphene is also usually used to generate the development of additional follicles which women who already ovulate develop in their ovaries without having recourse to medications.

In addition to this drug medication’s use as a treatment for infertility,  it’s also frequently used in an attempt to induce the process of ovulation in women who are unable to generate the development and release of an egg by their own efforts.

By taking clomiphene, users anticipate that they can improve their chances of getting pregnant due to the many more follicles that can be developed in a woman’s ovaries by taking the treatment. The increased number of follicles will likewise produce the dame number of eggs for releasing.

This process of increasing follicles in the ovaries and therefore a corresponding increase in the number of eggs that can mature, released and fertilized can also occur. The process is called the controlled ovarian hyper-stimulationor superovulation.

How and when will I ovulate on Clomid?

This is a question often asked by women who plan to use clomiphene and the correct answer is timing.

You need to time intercourse with your partner on the actual day that the egg is released for fertilizing. It’s normal for women to prefer using the predictor kits or urine test which can be done at home.

A useful indicator for the release of eggs is the surge in the presence of LH in the body. This LH surge in the blood starts about 36 hours before ovulation takes place and the test is typically carried out in the mornings.

Egg fertilization will occur when sexual intercourse occurs best when the result of the test is positive but the next morning is also the ideal time for ovulation to take place and therefore for egg fertilization.

Ovulation usually occurs approximately 14 days before the beginning of the next menstrual period. This means that if the length of the menstrual cycle is known for a woman’s Clomid cycle, then intercourse need to be timed so it will fall about 12 to 16 days before the expected date for the next period.

To show this more clearly, the following example is provided:

• if a woman has a Clomid cycle length of 32 days, then she’s likely to be ovulating on perhaps day 18
• if that’s the case, her ideal day for having sex with her partner is on either on days  16, 18 and 20

Success rates for Clomiphene in women who ovulate

Many women wonder whether they can conceive while taking Clomiphene or Clomid. The answer to this question is not easy to give because there are many variables involved in a fertility scenario. When one has to guess about the effectiveness of Clomiphene, some important aspects are involved such as:

• what the cause of infertility is, which, in many cases is not known
• the woman’s age
• the quality and quantity of the sperm
• how long the infertility has taken place
• the likely presence of endometriosis
• previous pregnancies
•  other numerous factors

Unexpected infertility cases

A highly successful study that was published in 1998 involved a review of results for l45 other published studies on fertility treatments for patients experiencing unexplained infertility.

The review study wished to ascertain the “average success rate” for the different types of fertility treatments for couples suffering from unexplained infertility. The researchers presented a summary of their findings as follows:

From: Guzick D, et al: Efficacy of treatment for unexplained infertility. Fertility and Sterility 1998; 20:207- 21

How is fertility enhanced by clomiphene?

Clomiphene also known as Clomid is an oral drug medication that’s regularly used for the treatment of certain types of infertility in women.

What Clomid does is make your body think that you have lower levels of estrogen than you really have and this causes the pituitary gland at the base of the brain to secret an increasing number of hormones (FSH) that produces more follicles as well as luteinizing hormone, or LH.

Higher levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) causes the ovary to produce an egg follicle or multiple follicles which mature and released during the ovulation process. Augmenting the process is the high levels of LH which trigger the ovulation of egg release process.

How to take Clomiphene

Typically, Clomiphene is a 50 mg tablet that taken orally for a total of five days in a row at the beginning of a woman’s menstrual cycle.

Days, three, four, or five are ideal for starting the Clomiphene cycle.

It’s normal for your doctor to start you off on a prescription of one, two, three or sometimes four tablets that should be taken at the same time every day. The prescription is based on how your doctor think you’ll react to the drug medication.

Normally, the dose will start at the lowest level dose and should be increased every month according to its needed use.

After being issued with your prescription of tablets, your physician may require you to return and attend a blood test for measuring your hormone levels or undergo a transvaginal ultrasound to evaluate the condition of your follicles.

The information they gather will help them in determine when you should start having intercourse or to have an intrauterine insemination (IUI). Your dose for your next cycle may also be prepared at that time.

It’s normal for doctors not to recommend the use of Clomid for more than three to six cycles because continued use will decrease the chance of getting pregnant. Nevertheless, your doctor may extend the period of use in order to find the ideal dose for you.

Conclusion

The answer to the question: Can clomiphene affect the length of a cycle is somewhat increased by the taking of clomiphene, but fortunately, the situation is a temporary one and doesn’t really have a negative impact on the function of a tablet once it’s ingested. However, the more serious effect of Clomid is that the possibility of getting pregnant decreases with the continued use of the drug medication and so a limitation in its use should be applied to cancel out this effect.