An AMH test is a simple blood test that your GP or fertility specialist can order. It gives a good indication of how many eggs you have left — that is, your egg reserve.
The test won’t give you an exact number of eggs, or tell you about the quality of those eggs. But it will provide the doctor with an idea of how your reserve compares to other women your age.
When planning your future family, knowing roughly how many eggs you have—and therefore roughly how much time you have left to have children— is a vital piece of information to have. Which is why getting your AMH test done is normally the first step in your fertility journey.
How the test works.
AMH stands for anti-mullerian hormone, which is a hormone secreted by the cells in the follicles of an ovary. How much of this hormone you have indicates how many eggs you have left, and it is easily tested through a blood draw. Your GP will probably order this test in combination with other pre-pregnancy blood tests, such as STIs and Rubella.
When you should get the test.
The test can be conducted at any time in your cycle. However, it’s generally recommended that you cease the contraceptive pill at least 3 months before the test as it can interfere with the results.
What the test might tell you.
Generally, this test acts as a helpful indicator that may guide you to start a family earlier or freeze your eggs, or perhaps give you some peace of mind that there’s no need to rush too much.
Sometimes this test can deliver unwelcome (but useful) results, such as if your body is entering early menopause, or if you have a lower egg reserve than expected. However, if this is you, we urge you not to lose hope of having children, as there are many fertility treatments available.
It’s important that a fertility specialist or a GP with a good understanding of fertility interprets the results of an AHM test, as they can sometimes seem more alarming than they are, or they may simply mean that the fertility specialist will pursue a different form of treatment for you.
Book your AMH Test
Because this is a simple blood test, we would suggest getting your GP to request it, and have the results in hand before you come for a first fertility consultation with one of our lovely specialists. Of course, we can order this for you too, but if you want to get the ball rolling, this is useful information for the fertility specialist to have.
Any GP can organise the AMH blood test for you. We would love to help you with this in our clinic, where our lovely Women’s Health GP can use her specialised fertility knowledge to run this test among other fertility assessments, and talk you through the results.
If you have any questions or would like to book a consultation, please, get in touch.
