How to calculate when conception occurred. Ovulation calendar for calculating favorable days for conceiving a child
How to calculate your due date
Stanford University follows the following calculation formula:
- Set the first day of your last menstrual period.
- Count back three calendar months
- Add a year and seven days to this date.
For example, your first day of your last menstrual period was September 9, 2019. We count back three months and get June 9, 2019. We add a year and seven days, we get June 16, 2019, traffic rules - the expected date of birth.
The site team understands how important it is for expectant mothers to be on guard, so they offer a new service - an interactive pregnancy calculator, designed specifically for you.
Using our calculator, you can accurately calculate your due date and all the main points of your pregnancy. The calculation will take just a few seconds, the page will refresh, and you will receive your pregnancy calendar by week. Now you will know exactly when your baby will be able to move his fingers, respond to your touch, and hear your voice.
If it seems to you that you became pregnant earlier or later than your menstruation, then after a routine ultrasound you will be able to once again calculate the gestational age, based on a number of medical indicators. Thanks to our service, you will know the answers to many questions regarding your gestational age and expected due date.
Benefits of use
pregnancy calculator:
Every woman has many questions when she becomes pregnant. When will your belly start growing? When will the baby start moving? When do you need to register at the antenatal clinic and when can you go on maternity leave? When can we expect the baby to be born? All these questions can be answered on our website. We described week by week all the changes in the body of the mother and child, indicated all significant events;
Using the pregnancy calculator, you can find out the exact timing of each trimester, significant dates (conception, childbirth, prenatal leave);
At the appointment, the doctor will definitely ask about changes in the woman’s condition. Using a calculator, it is very convenient to see what to pay attention to, when certain symptoms should appear;
The obstetrician-gynecologist will definitely draw up an examination plan, tell you which week you need to take certain tests, do an ultrasound and other instrumental studies. The electronic pregnancy calendar is a convenient reminder of exactly when and why you need to go to a consultation. We have tried to explain why each analysis is performed and how to evaluate its results.
An online pregnancy calculator is a convenient service that helps a woman have a clear idea of the course of pregnancy and the sequence of events.
- An approximate calculation based on the average cycle length and the beginning of ovulation - plus 14 days to the beginning of the last menstruation.
- Full 40 weeks.
A conception calendar is a convenient thing that allows a woman to monitor her menstrual cycle, namely, to determine dangerous and safe days in terms of a possible pregnancy. The child's conception calendar is a form in which you need to enter the first day of the last menstruation, and the program, using different colors, shows which days are the most “fruitful”. Try it, calculating the conception calendar is really very simple!
To better understand how the program works, we will present the main factors that were taken into account when creating it.
1. For the vast majority of women, ovulation (the only day in the month when the egg is ready for fertilization) occurs approximately in the middle of the cycle. Look at the conception calendar - the day of ovulation (exactly the middle of the menstrual cycle), as well as a few days before and after it are highlighted in orange and green.
2. Fertilization of the egg cannot occur during menstruation, or at the very end of the cycle. These “safe” days are represented in pink (see the baby conception calendar).
You can also check the accuracy of the data obtained by monitoring your condition during the ovulation period.
1. The amount of vaginal discharge will noticeably increase.
2. Libido (sex drive) will increase.
3. You may notice a jump in your basal temperature (measured in the rectum), but only if you plotted it in advance.
4. An ovulation test (can be purchased at almost any pharmacy) shows a positive result.
5. Short-term, aching pain in the area of the uterus and ovaries may appear.
6. Using an ultrasound examination, the doctor identifies signs that an egg has been released from the ovary.
You can calculate your conception calendar right now! Enter the exact data about the beginning of critical days (the exact date) and in a couple of seconds you will receive the necessary information. Please note that the data obtained cannot be trusted 100%; nevertheless, our body is a big mystery, and any “little things”, such as stress or a change of place of residence, can affect the processes in it.
Note also that ovulation does not occur every cycle. Every woman of reproductive age has at least 2 cycles per year that are “sterile.”
Every woman, having learned that she will soon become a mother, wants to understand when the first meeting with the baby will take place. To do this, you need to find out the gestational age; you can calculate it in several ways.
But even the most accurate calculations will only give, because not every pregnancy lasts exactly 40 weeks. The approximate dates are set by the doctor upon registration and can be slightly adjusted within 9 months.
Methods for determining gestational age
You can calculate the gestational age in different ways. Each has its own pros and cons. Some calculations are easy to do at home yourself, armed with a calendar, while other methods for determining the date require the help of a doctor and medical equipment.
By date of ovulation (conception)
This calculation method is the most accurate, especially in the early stages. Conception can occur only during a period that lasts several hours, and over the next 24 hours, while the egg remains in the fallopian tube. If sperm enter the uterus later, fertilization is no longer possible.
There are three ways to determine the day on which ovulation occurred:
- Calendar . Most often, menstruation begins exactly 2 weeks after ovulation. Knowing the duration, you can calculate the day when the egg left the ovary and was in the fallopian tube - the period of conception. For example, if 30 days pass from the beginning of one period to the beginning of another, then the calculation of ovulation will be as follows: 30-14 = 16 (conception occurred on the 16-17th day of the cycle). But this method turns out to be unsuitable in cases where ovulation or, that is, occurs not after 14 days, but after 10-13 or 15-18. Such a calculation will also not be possible for women with.
- . The principle of this test is based on detecting high levels of luteinizing hormone in urine or saliva. Its amount varies throughout the cycle and reaches a maximum on the eve of ovulation. When the test gives a result, it means that conception can occur in the next 24-48 hours. You can buy in pharmacies that react to the concentration of luteinizing hormone in saliva. They are designed for one or more applications. A more common option is strip strips that determine the level of LH in urine.
- Schedule . This method requires long-term measurement of temperature in the rectum. The procedure should be done in the morning, without getting out of bed. Record all data daily. Ovulation on the graph will be determined by a sharp increase in values by 0.4-0.6 degrees. In the first half of the cycle, it is no more than 37°C; on the day the egg is released from the ovary, it increases and remains at approximately the same level until the onset of the next menstruation. The disadvantage of this method is that such changes may not be caused by ovulation, but, for example, by recent sexual intercourse or an incipient cold.
Do not confuse the day of sexual intercourse and the day of conception. Fertilization of the egg is possible within 24-36 hours after ovulation. Sperm entering a woman’s body can remain alive for up to 7 days. That is, within a week (usually 3-5 days) after sexual intercourse, conception can occur.
By start date of the menstrual cycle
This is how the obstetric gestational age is calculated. It does not take into account exactly what day conception occurred and the development of the embryo began. Therefore, it is not entirely accurate; the error can range from 7 to 14 days.
How to calculate the gestational age based on the last menstruation? First you need to remember when they started. For further calculations, it is better to prepare a calendar. It is necessary to determine the number of days from the first day of the last menstrual bleeding to today. This will be the obstetric period of pregnancy.
You can find out the expected time of birth of a child in the following ways:
- Count 40 weeks from the start of your last period.
- From the beginning of the last menstruation, subtract (count back) 3 months, and then add 1 week. Move this calendar date forward a year.
For example, a woman’s last period began on October 20, 2016. According to method 1, we add 40 weeks, and the expected date of birth is July 27, 2017. We calculate in 2 ways: October 20 minus 3 months - July 20, plus 1 week - July 27. The dates match, both calculations are correct.
This method of calculation turns out to be the most accurate for women with a 28-day menstrual cycle. How to make it easier - an online calculator will help you correctly calculate the gestational age, but again only for the reference cycle. In other cases, a doctor will be able to confirm the date more reliably.
By date of first movement
The method of determining the date of birth by the first movement has been used for more than 100 years. It was very relevant at a time when medical technology and knowledge were not developed. Now doctors do not use it, since other methods can calculate the gestational age in weeks more accurately.
It is believed that the first movement occurs exactly in the middle of pregnancy. Based on this, you can calculate the expected date of birth. Embryonic development of the fetus lasts 38 weeks. This means that by the day when the woman felt the first tremors, you need to add 19 weeks - this will be the expected date of birth. And if we subtract the same period of time, we get the date of conception.
But the error of such a calculation is very large:
- With the help of modern medical equipment, it has been established that the baby can begin to move as early as 12 weeks of pregnancy, but women feel it later.
- Most often, women who will give birth for the first time begin to feel the baby’s movements at 20 weeks, and those who already have children, earlier - at 18. It turns out that the calculations for the date of birth will be as follows: we add 18 weeks to the day of the first movement (for those who is having their first pregnancy) or 20 weeks (for repeat pregnancies).
- All women have different sensitivity. According to the observations of doctors, thin women who lead a sedentary lifestyle are the first to detect movements. They celebrate them as early as 14 weeks of pregnancy.
Considering that the pregnancy itself can last from 38 to 42 weeks, the error in this calculation becomes even greater. Doctors mark the day of the first movement in the chart, but it is not used to adjust the expected date of birth.
Based on uterine measurements
From a certain period, namely from the 6th month, the height of the uterine fundus in centimeters corresponds to the number of weeks of gestation. Therefore, by measuring this parameter, you can calculate the approximate date of birth and gestational age.
The height of the fundus of the uterus is the distance from its upper edge to the symphysis pubis. The gynecologist measures it from 14-16 weeks; before this period it is located behind the pubic bone, and its size can only be determined by a vaginal examination.
The only tools you need are a measuring tape. You need to lie on your back, after emptying your bladder. Free the abdomen from clothing and carefully palpate it along the lobar line: in the place where the elastic abdomen becomes soft, the fundus of the uterus (its upper border) is located. You need to measure from this point to the symphysis pubis.
To make it easier to find the upper border of the uterus, you can focus on standard indicators:
- at 12 weeks it reaches the upper edge of the pubic bone, the size of the entire uterus is comparable to the size of the newborn baby’s head, it cannot yet be felt and measured;
- at 16 weeks - located 6 cm from the symphysis pubis, you need to feel the distance from the navel to the pubic bone;
- 20 - 12 cm above the pubis, determined approximately 2 fingers below the navel;
- on 24 - palpable 22-24 cm from the pubis, just in the navel area;
- 28 – 27-29 cm, this is about 2-3 fingers above the navel;
- at 32 – set 31-33 cm from the womb, palpated between the navel and the beginning of the sternum approximately in the middle;
- at 36 – 35-37 cm, determined at the level of the beginning of the sternum;
- at 40 weeks, the baby places its head in the pelvic bones, and the uterus drops slightly, the height of its bottom is 32-33 cm, palpable between the navel and the beginning of the sternum.
How to calculate what the exact stage of pregnancy is now and when birth will occur, knowing the height of the uterine fundus? This can be done when the indicator reaches 24 cm. From this period, the number of weeks of pregnancy is the same (24 or more). Considering that the entire pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, the calculations are easy to do.
The accuracy of this method is low, so at present it is practically not used. But these measurements are still carried out, their purpose is to identify possible complications. If the height of the uterine fundus does not correspond to the duration of pregnancy, this may be a sign of hydatidiform mole, tumor and other pathologies.
Ultrasound
Ultrasound can be performed in the early stages. Already from 3-5 weeks, the fertilized egg begins to be visualized; determining its location helps to exclude it, and its diameter helps to determine the period.
At 5-6 weeks the embryo itself is examined, the doctor measures the coccygeal-parietal size (). There are standard values for this indicator for certain periods. By comparison, the gestational age and the approximate date of birth are calculated.
In the 2nd and 3rd trimesters, the following indicators are measured during ultrasound:
- biparietal size - the segment between the parietal tubercles;
- circumference of the head, chest and abdomen;
- thigh bone length.
There are also standards for all these values. By comparing the measurement values, the gestational age can be calculated and the due date can be predicted. But as individual differences become more apparent with each passing week, the potential for error increases. The size of the fetus is reflected in the mother's diseases, hereditary factors, and characteristics of the course of pregnancy. Therefore, by the end of gestation, the child can weigh 2700 grams or 4500 - both options will be the norm.
So, determining the duration of pregnancy and date of birth using ultrasound will be accurate up to 12 weeks. The more time has passed since this period, the less reliable the results will be.
According to hCG level
Human chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone that is produced by the membranes from the 6th day after conception. The first weeks there is a rapid increase in its concentration in the blood: doubling every 2 days. Then its production gradually decreases, and from 9-11 weeks the indicators begin to decrease.
You can find out the concentration of hCG in the blood by submitting it for laboratory analysis. There are certain norms for the content of this hormone in plasma for a certain period of pregnancy. Each laboratory uses its own reagents, the sensitivity of which varies. Therefore, there is no single table of standard values.
The method of determining the duration of pregnancy by the level of hCG in the blood is practically not used, although it is quite accurate, especially in the early stages. The analysis is carried out to identify pathologies, for example, or implantation of an embryo outside the uterine cavity.
What difficulties might arise?
No matter how accurate the methods for calculating the timing of pregnancy are, they all only give an approximate date of birth. It is impossible to say with a 100% guarantee when the baby will be born.
According to statistics, 17% of pregnant women give birth on the day predicted by doctors, and the remaining majority give birth earlier or later. It turns out that even the most qualified specialists and high-tech equipment are not able to perform absolutely accurate calculations.
Labor is considered normal if it begins between 38 and 42 weeks of pregnancy. In these cases, the fetus is considered full-term. With some complications, labor begins. The cause may be pathology of the child’s development, stressful situations, various disorders in the mother’s body, and hereditary factors. All this must be taken into account when calculating the gestational age.
The child is often observed with, in the case of taking hormonal drugs, with impaired ovarian function. The hereditary factor also influences: if there have been late births in the female line, then it is likely that they will recur.
The menstrual cycle and ovulation are physiological processes. The length of the cycle ranges from 24 to 35 days. Therefore, any calculations based on them will always have a certain amount of error.
Standard calculations are based on the assumption that pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, and this is only true for a 28-day cycle. The time of ovulation is also determined by static data: 14 days before the start of menstruation. In fact, this process can happen 3-4 days earlier or later.
You can calculate the gestational age in different ways. The most accurate determinations are by the date of conception (ovulation), by the last day of menstruation and by ultrasound data for up to 12 weeks. Other methods can be considered auxiliary; they allow a large degree of error and are not used in medical practice for this purpose.
Even the most accurate method can be off by 1-2 weeks, or even more. This is due to the fact that the duration of gestation ranges from 38 to 42 weeks (normal), the menstrual cycle - from 24 to 35 days, the onset of ovulation can also occur several days earlier or later than expected in standard calculations.
Useful video on how to calculate gestational age and due date
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The long-awaited pregnancy has arrived, and you really want to know when you will see your baby? To calculate the gestational age and the expected day of birth, it is enough to know just one date: the day of the start of the last menstruation. It is from this that the gynecologist will calculate the gestational age when you come to the clinic to register.
Calculate gestational age online
Only a few women can accurately name the date of conception of a child in order to accurately calculate the real gestational age. And even in this case, the birth of a new life may occur on another day, when the future parents do not know about it. At the same time, almost every woman remembers the date of her last period, which is why obstetricians take it as a starting point. Theoretically, ovulation—the period when an egg is released ready for fertilization—occurs in the middle of the menstrual cycle. Therefore, between the actual age of the fetus and the obstetric gestational age (which begins on the first day of the last menstruation) there is a difference of approximately two weeks.
So, to calculate your gestational age online, you need to remember when your last period started. Two weeks are added to this day: it is during this period that the egg fully matures and fertilization can occur. Next, you can calculate the expected date of birth in two ways: the first is when forty weeks are added to the date of the first day of the last menstruation. The second is that three months are subtracted from the day when conception could have occurred and seven days are added to it.
But if you don't like fiddling with calculations, the interactive pregnancy calculator will do it for you. Enter your data (the date of the first day of your last menstrual period) and within a second you will receive the result of your pregnancy in weeks and days.
Calculate gestational age by date of conception
This calculator can also be used to calculate the gestational age based on the day the child was conceived, if you are confident in the accuracy of this date. In this case, you will find out the actual (gestational) gestational age, which will correspond to the age of the fetus. The obstetric date that your doctor will give you on the first day of your last menstruation will differ from it by approximately two weeks (that is, it will be longer than the gestational age).
Using our calculator to calculate the gestational age by week, you can also find out the approximate due date and begin to prepare for it in advance: find a comfortable maternity hospital and a good doctor, study breathing techniques during childbirth, choose a comfortable position for childbirth, think about partner childbirth, arrange children's room and stock up on everything necessary to care for a newborn.
Use our EDA (estimated due date) calculator to calculate the estimated date of birth of your baby. The calculation can be made by the date of conception, or by the date of the last menstruation. Select the appropriate option and enter the original date. As a result of the calculation, you will receive the cherished date, as well as an accurate pregnancy calendar with comprehensive information about fetal development and medical indications for each week. The calculation results can be saved by email or printed.
Calculator for expected date of birth
with pregnancy calendar