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Trying to conceive with insemination, and feeling stressed about the timing of everything?
You’ve got your LH surge, the actual insemination, ovulation, and maybe even trigger shots to worry about. It’s a lot to stay on top of, and you know timing matters. So this begs the question: when to inseminate after LH surge? The short answer is anywhere between 8 to 48 hours after your positive LH test.
But come along for a closer look at the process of insemination and ovulation. This way, you can feel as prepared as possible for your upcoming procedure or at-home insemination.
Takeaways for when to inseminate after LH surge
- Insemination is when you have sperm inserted into the female reproductive tract.
- IUI (intrauterine) and ICI (intracervical) are the two types of insemination.
- Many studies have different opinions on the best timing for insemination. But 8 – 48 hours after your LH surge is a good timeline for insemination.
- Success rates for insemination vary based on whether you do IUI or ICI.
- Inito’s fertility monitor can help you track your LH to time your insemination.
- As you prepare for insemination, be sure to research, plan ahead, and manage your expectations!
What is insemination?
Here’s a brief overview of how insemination works. Simply put, it’s the process of inserting millions of sperm into the female reproductive tract.
Insemination can be performed by a trained medical professional (like an obstetrician or fertility specialist). And nowadays, you can even inseminate within the comfort of your own home. You will just need to make sure you have all the necessary tools and time the insemination carefully.
IUI vs. ICI: What’s the difference?
There are many variabilities to insemination. These include what happens with the sperm beforehand as well as where in the reproductive tract the sperm is inseminated.
In intrauterine insemination (IUI), the sperm is placed directly inside of your uterus. This type of insemination must take place at a healthcare facility or fertility clinic. With an IUI, sperm must be washed and prepared in advance.
To purify the sperm, a medical professional will separate the seminal fluid from the sperm cells. This ensures you avoid infection when the sperm is introduced into the uterus through a catheter.
An intracervical insemination (ICI) is slightly different. In an ICI, unwashed semen (that includes the sperm) is deposited in the vagina right at the cervix. This can be done with a needleless syringe or even a menstrual cup.
Are you wondering why sperm washing is not necessary for ICI? Because cervical mucus in your vaginal tract helps separate the seminal fluid (that could contain harmful bacteria) from the sperm before it enters your uterus. If you are performing insemination at home, you are likely using the ICI approach.
Let’s understand how your ovulation works and when you can inseminate.
Understanding your LH surge and ovulation
Over time, methods for timing ovulation have advanced. Previously, women had to rely on careful tracking of their basal body temperature (BBT) or close observation of their cervical mucus (CM).
But today, you can also use ovulation predictor kits (OPKs) or fertility monitors that test the LH in your urine. And this can all be done at home.
Here’s a glimpse at the timing of your LH surge and ovulation in a typical cycle:
- Ovulation occurs about 24-36 hours after a rise in your LH (luteinizing hormone) levels. This increase in LH signals for your ovaries to release an egg.
- LH continues to rise for about 24 hours.
- Ovulation takes place about 8-20 hours after your LH levels reach their peak.
Please realize that this timeline isn’t a cookie-cutter example for all women or all cycles. But it gives you a good idea of the general timeline between your LH surge and ovulation.
If your LH surge has occurred, read on to find out when you should inseminate.
How long after my LH surge should I inseminate?
A lot of researchers have tried to answer this very question. Unfortunately, different studies have resulted in different conclusions here.
Here’s a quick glimpse at some studies that have investigated this dilemma:
Study | Findings |
Study involving 197 women undergoing 276 cycles with single IUI. | Researchers saw a difference in pregnancy rates based on the timing of insemination.
Ongoing pregnancy rates and live births were statistically higher for the group inseminated 36 – 40 hours after the LH surge. |
A study of 177 cycles1456 included inseminations taking place anywhere from 8 – 31 hours after the positive LH test. | No statistical difference in the timing of the insemination or LH testing (morning vs. evening). |
Study of 116 women in which insemination took place either at 24 hours after the LH surge or 48 hours after the LH surge. | There was no difference in pregnancy rates between the two different groups. |
A 2013 study examined the rate of pregnancy in 150 IUI patients. They looked at two groups: IUIs taking place 48 hours post hCG trigger versus IUS 36 hours post trigger shot. | Researchers saw an increase of 22.6% in the group that delayed insemination to 48 hours after the trigger shot. |
Keep in mind that each of these studies used varying research methods and had relatively small sample sizes. So hopefully even more research will eventually clarify the best timing for insemination.
But inseminating any time between 8 and 48 hours after the first positive urine LH test should be a safe bet. This is based on the above studies and what we know about the timing of ovulation and sperm/egg lifespans,
Here’s a quick breakdown to understand the insemination timeline even more:
- Sperm can remain in the female tract for up to 5 days.
- Your ovary releases an egg about 24-36 hours after the initial rise in LH.
- Once you ovulate, the egg can only survive for up to 24 hours.
- If insemination (either IUI or ICI) takes place within 48 hours of the LH surge, the timing of the procedure will not influence the probability of conception.
What are the success rates of insemination?
Now that you understand the timing of insemination, here’s what you can expect for your chances at success. The rate of IUI success for one cycle is about 20%. The chances of getting pregnant after 5 cycles of IUI go up to 50-70%.
ICI has slightly lower success rates. If you remember from earlier, in an ICI, the sperm is deposited by the cervix instead of in the uterus. This means there is extra traveling involved for the sperm to get to the right place. Success rates for one round of ICI are less than 10%.
When it comes to insemination, age is an important factor. For women who are 40 or older, IUI is not usually recommended. This is because it’s less likely to result in pregnancy, and you don’t want to waste any time. If you are over 40 and struggling with fertility, it is preferable to skip to IVF and other interventions that have higher success rates.
Other considerations for insemination
There’s certainly a lot to consider before choosing to do an IUI or ICI. Here are some basic facts and figures to be aware of ahead of time.
Costs involved with insemination
- One round of IUI can cost between $500 to $4,000. Some insurance plans may cover a certain number of rounds, but some won’t. Make sure to check with your specific provider before planning an insemination.
- One round of ICI could cost between $50 and $500.
- Sperm costs can range from $300 to $4,000 depending on who the sperm came from and if it was frozen. And sadly, sperm is not immune to inflation. You can expect sperm expenses to increase 4-10% each year.
Pros vs. cons of insemination
- IUI and ICI are both minimally invasive fertility approaches. Neither requires surgery. And ICI can even be done within your home.
- Both types of insemination are less expensive than other interventions like IVF or IVF-ICSI.
Using Inito to help with insemination
Inito’s fertility monitor can help when you are TTC via insemination with spontaneous ovulation. Spontaneous means you aren’t using an hCG trigger shot to help induce ovulation.
The Inito monitor will give you your exact hormone levels. This helps you gauge your LH surge and identify your “peak fertility.” If you are inseminating at home, you may plan for insemination to take place about 8 – 48 hours after your LH peak.
If you are undergoing IUI, your doctor or fertility specialist will give you directions on the timing of insemination. But they may ask you to test your LH at home using an OPK or fertility monitor.
Other tips for successful insemination
Do your research
Look into which type of insemination is best for you based on your fertility needs. Talk to others who have gone through this and ask them questions. If you are doing an ICI at home, watch videos or read tutorials beforehand.
You will want to know what to expect and where to place the sperm. You don’t want to be stressed out in the moment when you are about to be inseminated.
Plan ahead
Make sure to look into your estimated costs well in advance so you can be prepared financially. This will help you avoid unforeseen surprises and extra stress. Be sure to reach out to your insurance company. They can tell you if your health plan will cover any costs associated with insemination.
And make sure to begin cycle tracking as early as possible. The better understanding you have of your menstrual cycle, the less surprises you will face.
Manage your expectations
Try your best to balance being optimistic and realistic. It is definitely possible for you to get pregnant with insemination. But it could take more than one cycle to achieve pregnancy.
And remember, there are other more assisted fertility techniques (ARTs) like IVF that may be options for you as well. Knowing this ahead of time can help you feel less defeated if the first round or two of insemination don’t work out.
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- Time schedules of intrauterine insemination after urinary luteinizing hormone surge detection and pregnancy results
- IUI AFTER LH SURGE: HOW SOON IS TOO SOON? – Fertility and Sterility
- use of urine LH detection kits to time intrauterine insemination with donor sperm | Human Reproduction | Oxford Academic
- An Algorithm Combining Ultrasound Monitoring and Urinary Luteinizing Hormone Testing: A Novel Approach for Intrauterine Insemination Timing
- The Interval Between Insemination and Ovulation Predicts Outcome After Intrauterine Insemination With Donor Sperm (IUI-D)
- Original Article The effect of delaying intrauterine insemination till 48 h after hCG injection on pregnancy rate
- https://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/abstract/2023/07000/intrauterine_insemination_after_human_chorionic.8.aspx
- Timing of IUI 24 or 48 hours after spontaneous LH peak: a randomized controlled trial. — Vrije Universiteit Brussel
- https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02294773
- The use of urine LH detection kits to time intrauterine insemination with donor sperm
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09513599409028450?journalCode=igye20
- American Pregnancy Association
