Progesterone Test

Seven days before your period is due. Count back from the expected start of your next bleed rather than forward from your last one, because the second half of the cycle is the part that stays a fairly fixed length.

Then a single sample is hard to place, and one low reading may only mean you tested at the wrong point. Repeating over a couple of cycles, or seeing your GP about the irregularity itself, is usually more useful.

Yes. The combined pill, patch and ring, the injection, the implant and many progestogen-only pills usually stop ovulation, so a progesterone level cannot be read the usual way while you use them. Most people with a hormonal coil still ovulate, but tell us if you have one. Do not stop contraception to take a test.

Laboratories differ, so the range printed on your report is the one that applies. Broadly, a clearly raised mid-luteal level supports ovulation having happened that cycle, and the doctor's note explains where your figure sits.

It can. Hormone from cream or gel on your skin, such as HRT or testosterone gel, can get into a finger-prick sample and give a falsely high result. Wash your hands first, do not take the sample from a finger or area where cream or gel has been applied, and if you apply gel to your hands, use the other hand.

It can. High-dose biotin (vitamin B7), often sold for hair, skin and nails, can make some hormone results read too high or too low. Laboratory advice is usually to leave at least 8 hours after a dose of 5 mg or more, and some advise longer, so the simplest approach is to skip it on the day of your sample. Tell us if you take it, and do not stop a medicine that a doctor has prescribed.

The laboratory typically takes 1 to 2 working days from receiving your sample. This does not include kit delivery, sample collection or return postage. A doctor reviews your results before they are released.

Both, it is your choice at checkout. Either collect a finger-prick sample at home with the posted kit and send it back as the instructions explain, or book a clinic appointment and have a trained clinician take the sample for you.

Yes. Every result is reviewed by a GMC-registered doctor who signs it off and explains what it means and what to do next.

Your results are available through your secure patient portal. Our privacy policy explains how your information is handled and when it may be shared to provide your care.

Your sample is analysed at a UKAS-accredited laboratory (ISO 15189). A GMC-registered doctor then reads every result and signs the report before it is released, so nothing reaches you unreviewed. There is no option to receive results without a doctor reading them first. The report arrives in your secure portal in plain English: each result with its unit and the laboratory's own reference range, and the doctor's note on what the set means read together. If a result sits outside its range the report says so and explains what usually happens next, which is most often a conversation with your own GP, who can act on it alongside your history and examination. Most reference ranges are set to cover about 95% of healthy people, so about 1 in 20 healthy people fall just outside any one of them. On a report with many results it is common for one to sit just outside its range, and a single number on its own rarely tells the whole story. If a result needs urgent attention, the reviewing doctor is alerted straight away and we contact you by phone the same working day rather than leaving it in the portal for you to find. If a specific result needs rechecking, the reviewing doctor says so in your report.