The level of hCG - what is the norm?

The abbreviation HCG is familiar to anyone planning pregnancy and a pregnant woman. The decipherment of these letters is human chorionic gonadotropin . This substance, the development of which begins immediately after the onset of pregnancy - the attachment of the fetal egg to the wall of the uterus.

In the first few weeks, the concentration of hCG in the blood is normal every 48 hours doubled. Later, he begins to excrete with urine - this is the principle of the work of pregnancy tests. The fact is that the beta-hCG rate for men and non-pregnant women is 0-1 mU / ml, the level up to 25 mU / d does not allow to interpret the result with confidence, therefore the analysis is usually reworked in a couple of days, but the high indicator is a confirmation of the fact of pregnancy . Thus, a blood test can confirm or deny the presence of pregnancy after only a week and a half after the fertilization of the egg.

Normally, the level of hCG for weeks of pregnancy is as follows:

It is worth noting that different laboratories sometimes indicate results in different units, and therefore do not get scared at once, seeing the figures much higher or lower than usual. It is best to focus on the reference values that are usually indicated in the analysis results.

The maximum level of hCG is fixed between 9 and 14 weeks of pregnancy. At this time, the concentration of beta-hCG reaches 200-300 thousand mU / ml, after which the index begins to decrease steadily until the delivery. Also, it should not be forgotten that the rates of hCG during pregnancy more than one fruit are doubled, tripled and so on, depending on the number of fruits.

The blood test is more accurate than the rapid test, because the concentration of the hormone in the urine is about 2 times lower, which means that the express strip is much more likely to get a contradictory result. In addition, a blood test helps a doctor with sufficient accuracy to determine its term without resorting to ultrasound.

The level of hCG in the blood is an important indicator, the deviation from which may be a sign of illness or hormonal disorders.

A low beta-hCG may indicate a beginning miscarriage or even provoke it. Also, the low level of hCG is observed with ectopic pregnancy, and since this condition requires an urgent call to a doctor, it is very important to determine it before the onset of other consequences. A sharp fall in the indicator of this hormone in early pregnancy can talk about a stiff pregnancy, that is, the death of the fetus.

Beta-hCG may exceed the norm in the case of malignant tumors in the ovaries, lungs and mammary gland, and a non-zero index in the male analysis can talk about tumors in the prostate or testicles.

In nonpregnant women, hCG may be non-zero also in the case of taking medications containing this hormone, and also some time after the termination of pregnancy by childbirth or abortion. In any case, with the slightest doubt, it is best to consult a doctor.