Natural contraception using the Billings ovulation method.
OBJECTIVE
The Billings ovulation method (BOM) is a medical model of a natural procreation education method based on scientific observation of the changes in the cervical mucus. In this study we examined Turkish women's interest in accurate usage of cervical mucus changes in determining the ovulation time.


METHODS
Fifteen regularly cycling women monitored their fertility patterns in 30 cycles using the BOM and urine luteinizing hormone (LH) kits. At the end ofeach cycle, the cervical mucus monitoring chart and LH kits were collected from the subjects and analyzed.


RESULTS
The cervical mucus symptoms defined a potential fertile period of 10 days' average length, with the 'peak' mucus characteristic occurring at a mean of day 13.65 +/- 2.62 of the cycle. The duration ofthe LH surge, as observed in early morning urine samples, averaged 5 days, with the peak occurring at a mean of day 13.40 +/- 2.58 of the cycle. Data indicated that there was a strong correlation between LH in the urine and the peak in self-observed, cervical-vaginal mucus (p = 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
This study proved that women can distinguish patterns of ovulation and anovulation by self-detection of variations in cervical mucus characteristics, and that urinary LH levels strongly correlate with ovulation.
Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Istanbul Medical School, Istanbul University, Turkey.
E
E
Attar
S
S
Gokdemirel
H
H
Serdaroglu
A
A
Coskun
D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers; D002582:Cervix Mucus / Q000502:physiology; D005193:Family Planning Services / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000652:urine; D012252:Natural Family Planning Methods; D010060:Ovulation / Q000502:physiology*; D010061:Ovulation Detection / Q000379:methods*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D014421:Turkey
D015415:Biomarkers; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone