What Levels of Pregnancy Hormone (hCG) Are Normal?
 Are Normal?: Waiting to hear the results of your beta hCG tests can be nerve wracking.){kind=link}
Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy.
Updated February 25, 2015.
Definition:
hCG stands for human chorionic gonadotropin. hCG is a hormone produced during pregnancy. Pregnancy testing involves the detection of hCG.
The hormone hCG may also be used as a fertility drug to help follicles mature and to trigger ovulation.
Normal Levels of hCG in Pregnancy
Beta hCG, also known as quantitative serum beta-HCG, refers to the testing of the amount of hCG hormone present in the blood.
Your doctor may order a beta hCG if a urine test came back positive, or, if you're in the middle of fertility treatments, just before or when your period is due.
hCG is measured in milli-international units per milliliter. This is abbreviated as mIU/ml.
Repeat blood tests for hCG may be performed every two to three days to evaluate how quickly levels are rising. Slow-to-rise hCG levels may indicate a high risk for miscarriage.
The levels should double every 48 to 72 hours.
Whether you have high or low levels is not the best indicator of a healthy pregnancy. The more important thing to watch for is whether they are doubling as expected.
Here are the general ranges of hCG levels during pregnancy. They are just a guideline, every pregnancy is different. Ask your doctor if you're concerned about your hCG levels.
(The number of weeks listed is from your last menstrual period.)
A level less than 5.0 mIU/ml is considered to be a negative pregnancy result.
3 Weeks: 5 to 50 mIU/ml
4 Weeks: 5 to 426 mIU/ml
5 Weeks: 18 to 7,340 mIU/ml
6 Weeks: 1,080 to 56,500 mIU/ml
7 to 8 Weeks: 7,650 to 229,000 mIU/ml
9 to 12 Weeks: 25,700 to 288,000 mIU/ml
13 to 16 Weeks: 13,300 to 254,000 mIU/ml
17 to 24 Weeks: 4,060 to 165,400 mIU/ml
25 to 40 Weeks: 3,640 to 117,000 mIU/ml
Wondering why the normal hCG range goes down mid-pregnancy? hCG levels peak around 8 to 11 weeks, and then decrease and level off for the rest of the pregnancy.
More on pregnancy and pregnancy testing:
- Quiz: Am I Having Pregnancy Symptoms?
- When the Pregnancy Test Is Negative
- Got a Positive Pregnancy Test? All Your Concerns Answered Here
- What No One Tells You About Pregnancy Tests
- 7 Reasons Not to Take an Early Pregnancy Test
- The Right Way to Take a Pregnancy Test When TTC
- Announcing Your Pregnancy After Infertility
- Telling Your Infertile Friend That You’re Pregnant...
- How to Have a Healthy Pregnancy After Infertility
hCG as Fertility Treatment
hCG may also be used during fertility treatment. Pregnancy hormone acts similarly in the body to the hormone LH. LH is the hormone that peaks just before ovulation and is key to triggering the last stage of follicle development.
A single injection of hCG -- sometimes referred to as a trigger shot -- may be given in the middle of a fertility treatment cycle. In a cycle with Clomid, gonadotropins, or IUI, the trigger shot may be given to boost ovulation and trigger release of the egg.
In an IVF treatment cycle, the trigger shot is given to push the follicles into the finally stages of maturity. Then, your doctor will schedule an egg retrieval to removed the mature eggs from the follicles.
More on fertility treatment:
- What Are Gonadotropins?
- Gonadotropin Side Effects and Risks
- 6 Things You Probably Don’t Know About Clomid
- Clomid Treatment: Day by Day, What to Expect
- GnRH Antagonists Side Effects and Risks
- GnRH Agonists (Lupron) Side Effects and Risks
- How to Give Yourself an Injection
- IVF Basics: Why It’s Done, What Happens, What It Costs
- IUI Success Rates
- Choosing Not to Pursue Fertility Treatment
- What Are The Potential Risks of Fertility Drugs?
- Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome Symptoms and Treatment
- Fertility Treatment Stress: How to Survive Your IVF, IUI, or Other Fertility Treatment Cycle
Would you like to receive trying to conceive tips and fertility information every week? Sign up for a free fertility newsletter here.
Source:
Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG);The Pregnancy Hormone. American Pregnancy Association. Accessed on February 6, 2015. http://americanpregnancy.org/while-pregnant/hcg-levels/
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