HCG hormone is essential to tell if a woman is pregnant or not.
Usually, when pregnant women have very high HCG pregnancy hormone levels, there are also cases of slow rising HCG.
The HCG hormone rising slowly or not rising is quite dangerous, but there are still cases where a woman with this problem still has a healthy pregnancy.
Our article will provide information about the HCG hormone, the causes and consequences of the slow-rising HCG, and tips for dealing with it for a positive pregnancy.
What Is The HCG Hormone?
Beta HCG (Human chorionic gonadotropin) is an essential hormone initially secreted by the placental trophoblast shortly after egg fertilization.
You can base serum HCG levels after conception to early identify and fetal monitor. You can detect Beta HCG in maternal serum approximately 8-9 days after ovulation.
It was accepted as normal for HCG levels in early pregnancy to increase below certain amounts:
- Under 4 weeks: HCG level will be double each 48 to 72 hours
- Week 4 – Week 6: HCG level wil be double earch 96 hours
- Week 10 – Week 12: Reach the highest level of HCG.
The concentration of beta HCG is expressed in units of mUI/ml. The beta HCG level is under five mUI/ml for non-pregnant women, while pregnant women will have a beta HCG level above 25 mUI/ml.
If you monitor the HCG level in the range of 6-24 mUI/ml, you’d better check further to determine whether or not you are pregnant.
However, many cases of slow rising HCG miracles still exist where women get pregnant. So, it is important to visit a medical facility to get an accurate diagnosis, rather than relying on a home testing kit.
Cause Of Slow Rising HCG
Slow rising HCG levels no bleeding can be caused by a mother’s non-uterine pregnancy, which occurs when a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus (usually a fallopian tube).
It is vital to the doctor. Identify this as quickly as possible so that the patient can be treated because the problem of ectopic pregnancy is quite severe.
In some cases, pregnant women have low HCG levels at first or slow rising HCG at five weeks compared to other pregnant women.
However, after 2-3 days, the HCG level increased steadily. When faced with this situation, women are not too worried that the fetus is having problems!
Stay calm and follow the instructions of your obstetrician-gynecologist for a viable pregnancy, an assisted reproductive (IVF) doctor, because many cases have slow rising HCG levels successful pregnancy.
Usually, when a pregnant woman’s test result has a slow or low rise in HCG, doctors do not have enough grounds to conclude immediately but continue to test HCG levels every 2-3 days to compare.
HCG levels are high or low for a few days is not as crucial as HCG levels rise and fall with each stage of pregnancy.
That’s why many women have a slow rising HCG at six weeks but still have a healthy baby afterward.
How To Detect A Slow Rising HCG?
Blood and urine tests are two common ways to check HCG levels to confirm whether a woman is pregnant.
A blood test that measures HCG levels is usually recommended on the 11th day after conception; you should urine tests should be done 12-14 days after birth.
A blood test is more accurate than a urine test.
In blood tests, there are qualitative tests to detect whether the mother has HCG in her blood, while quantitative (or Beta) tests measure the amount of HCG in the blood.
When the test results are available if the HCG level is at:
- Less than five mIU/mL: not pregnant
- Between 6 and 24 mIU/mL: is considered the gray area; need to check again to see if the HCG level has increased or not to be able to confirm pregnancy.
- Over 25 mIU/mL: pregnancy
A high HCG is the hallmark of pregnancy, meaning low HCG not doubling but increasing is not yet pregnant, or HCG miracle increases slowly, is pregnant.
Still, maybe the fetus is in danger, or sometimes the test results are not accurate enough to conclude the pregnant woman’s health status.
Some Dangers May Occur When Slow Rising HCG Miracle
Wrong Gestational Age
Gestational age is calculated from the first day of the last menstrual period before pregnancy.
At this time, the egg has not been fertilized. It is for this reason that gestational age is different from embryonic age.
The calculated gestational age will be about 2 to 2 weeks older than the actual age of the fertilized embryo (for women with regular menstrual cycles and 28 days).
For example, if a woman is expected to be six weeks pregnant, the source is only four weeks old at the time of fertilization.
For pregnant women who have had irregular menstrual cycles or do not remember the first day of their last period, it is easy to miscalculate the gestational age.
If the gestational age is incorrectly calculated, the HCG pregnancy test result may be lower or higher than the maternal gestational age calculation.
Miscarriage
Miscarriage usually occurs before the 20th week of pregnancy. If the pregnancy test results show low HCG levels or decrease from last result measurements, it is one of the signs of pregnancy loss or about miscarry.
The hormone HCG is secreted from the placenta, so when the fetus does not develop, the level of HCG will decrease.
If your hCG levels are dropping, it usually means the pregnancy is not viable. A positive pregnancy result followed by declining hCG levels increases could be a sign of a nonviable pregnancy.
Common signs of miscarriage include vaginal bleeding, fever, chills, fatigue, sweating, lower abdominal pain or dull pain in the lower abdomen, and no more morning sickness.
Fetus Stops Growing
After fertilization, the egg attaches to the uterus but is damaged, unable to develop into an embryo.
As the gestational sac develops, HCG hormone may be released, but HCG levels do not increase because the seed stops growing.
Fetus stops growing usually occurs very early; pregnant women often do not know they are pregnant because the signs do not differ from a regular menstrual cycle, except the amount of menstrual blood may increase slightly.
Ectopic Pregnancy
Usually, after fertilization, the embryo implants in the uterus.
The fetus is outside the uterus, called an ectopic pregnancy, most commonly in the fallopian tubes, blighted ovum, cervix, etc.
Ectopic pregnancy is hazardous if rupture can be life-threatening. The HCG level test results will show a lower-than-normal HCG reading in these cases.
What To Do When Pregnant Women Have A Slow Rising HCG?
Choose a good obstetrician and gynecologist: In the case of a pregnant woman with a slow rising HCG, it is necessary to choose a good, experienced doctor in obstetrics and gynecology for care and monitoring.
Because in addition to determining whether they are pregnant, pregnant women will be detected and treated early for other dangerous diseases that cause HCG to fall low, such as miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy.
Choose a reputable hospital with modern machinery: In addition to a good obstetrician, pregnant women should choose a hospital with modern machinery for a standard pregnancy test, accurate ultrasounds, etc., to timely diagnose the patient’s pathology: mother and fetus.
The mothers must always be optimistic about increasing the slow rising HCG levels success stories.
Conclusion
Slow rising HCG is not uncommon, but it is hazardous for pregnant women, so if the mother sees any abnormality during the weeks of pregnancy, she should see a doctor immediately.
If you receive the results and see that your HCG level is lower than usual, you calmly follow your doctor’s instructions and fertility treatments to have a positive pregnancy.
Besides the unfortunate cases, many women with slow rising HCG cases still have normal pregnancies.