Hormone blood test
If your periods hurt for days at a time, or the second half of your cycle brings mood changes and irritability, or you're tired and your GP says your bloods look fine, a hormone blood test is a reasonable place to start. The result depends on when in your cycle it's taken, though. That is where most single tests go wrong. We treat hormonal symptoms whether or not you're trying to conceive, and the blood tests follow a consultation either way. The 7 DPO blood test is for women in either position, and the Day 3 blood profile is part of the fertility assessment.
Hormone blood test: which hormones, and when in the cycle
We test at two points, for two different questions.
The Day 3 blood profile is taken once, on days 2 to 5 of your cycle, before ovulation. We look at FSH and LH, the pituitary hormones that drive the cycle. We look at prolactin and TSH, because both can interfere with ovulation. And we look at DHEA, an adrenal hormone that a standard panel often leaves out. It costs EUR 250, and it's part of the fertility assessment.
The 7 DPO blood test is taken after ovulation. DPO means days past ovulation, and we time it from your chart, on one of four days between 6 and 9 days after your identified peak day. We measure oestradiol and progesterone. Our targets are progesterone above 60 nmol/L and oestradiol above 400 pmol/L. It costs EUR 50 per test. It's part of the fertility assessment, and it suits women who aren't trying to conceive as well.
Why timing in the cycle changes what a result means
A hormone isn't one number. Progesterone is low before ovulation by design and should be high afterwards, so the same figure can be normal on one day and a problem on another. A result with no date in the cycle attached is hard to read.
The usual progesterone test is taken on day 21, and the standard it's read against is 30 nmol/L. All that test can tell you is whether you ovulated. We want to know how well. The luteal phase, that's a mouthful, is just the second half of your cycle after ovulation, and the 7 DPO test reads how the ovulation performed there. The timing method comes from published work co-authored by our team (Abdulla et al., Frontiers in Public Health, 2018). The 60 nmol/L and 400 pmol/L figures are our own clinic targets.
Female hormone test: the symptoms that lead women to ask for one
Women ask us for a female hormone test for reasons that have nothing to do with pregnancy:
- Irregular periods, or periods that are painful
- Mood changes, irritability and disturbed sleep in the second half of the cycle
- Bloating and breast tenderness before a period
- Acne, unwanted hair growth or hair thinning
- Tiredness
- Perimenopausal changes that have arrived earlier or harder than expected
A blood test doesn't diagnose any of these by itself. We read it alongside your chart and your symptoms, and the pattern is what points to the underlying cause. Our page on hormone imbalance in women explains what we look for and how we treat it.
Where the picture points that way, your doctor may advise two further tests. One is a three-point glucose and insulin test (EUR 200). The other is a female adrenal fatigue test, which measures salivary cortisol and DHEA (EUR 140).
Hormone blood test in Ireland: what each test costs and how to book
- Day 3 blood profile: EUR 250 (fertility assessment)
- 7 DPO blood test: EUR 50 per test (fertility assessment, or after a women's health consultation)
- Three-point glucose and insulin test: EUR 200
- Female adrenal fatigue test: EUR 140
Your results are reviewed with a doctor. For hormonal symptoms, the women's health consultation is 20 minutes and costs EUR 100. If fertility is part of the question, the fertility consultation is 45 minutes and costs EUR 300. You don't need a GP referral for either. A woman who isn't trying to conceive can have the 7 DPO test arranged after a women's health consultation. The Day 3 profile belongs to the fertility assessment and comes through the fertility consultation. Neither test can be booked without a consultation.
Charting with ChartNeo from your first appointment gives the 7 DPO test its date. To book a consultation, contact the clinic. The full list of test fees, including AMH, is on our fertility test cost page.