How do beta HCG levels change with gestational age?

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Nguyen Thi Man - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital. The doctor has more than 10 years of experience in diagnosing, consulting and treating in the field of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

HCG is an important hormone secreted during pregnancy. The concentration of hCG is not fixed but varies greatly during pregnancy. HCG is produced by the cells of the placenta and plays an important role in helping to nourish and protect the fetus.

hCG (short for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin) is a hormone produced very early in pregnancy, shortly after a fertilized egg moves from the fallopian tube to implant in the lining of the uterus. hCG is produced by the trophoblasts of the placenta, plays an important role in helping to nourish and protect the fetus:

hCG helps maintain the corpus luteum, which helps the corpus luteum continue to produce the hormones estrogen and progesterone during the first 4 months of pregnancy. The hormone progesterone helps maintain the lining of the uterus for embryo development. If the level of hCG is low, the corpus luteum is impaired, the hormone progesterone decreases, causing the lining of the uterus to shed, leading to menstruation, which can lead to the risk of miscarriage. hCG helps to stimulate the production of testosterone of the fetus, helps to determine the sex of the fetus, hCG enhances the production of corticosteroids and inhibits the mother's lymphocyte response, thereby reducing the mother's immune response. Reduces the mother's body's response to the fetus, helping to protect the fetus. The hCG hormone is a glycoprotein, consisting of two subunits, alpha and beta. Since the amino acid sequence of the alpha subunit coincides with some pituitary and thyroid hormones, only the beta subunit is specific for hCG. Beta hCG is detectable in the serum or urine of pregnant women about 8-9 days after ovulation.

In the early stages of pregnancy, hCG is made in very high concentrations, normally it doubles every 48-72 hours. Blood levels of hCG will peak between weeks 8-11 of pregnancy, after which it will tend to stabilize and drop. hCG causes pregnancy symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, sensitivity,... Therefore, in the early stages, hCG hormone levels are high, so pregnancy symptoms are often worse than later stages of pregnancy. .
The concentration of beta hCG is in mUI/ml. For non-pregnant women, the beta hCG level is less than 5 mUI/ml, in pregnant women the beta hCG level is above 25 mUI/ml. If the hCG level is in the range of 6-24 mUI/ml, it should be checked and monitored further to confirm pregnancy or not.
Details of fetal development week by week, every parent should learn:

Beta hCG is used to diagnose pregnancy when the period is late. Pregnancy test strips are test tools to detect the presence of beta hCG. The pregnancy test strips on the market today usually have a sensitivity of 20-25 mUI/ml, so a pregnant woman and the hCG concentration exceeds the above level, the test strip will appear two lines. If the test strip shows a line, then you are not pregnant or pregnant but the hCG level has not reached the level for the test strip to detect.
Beta hCG levels will change throughout pregnancy, you can refer to beta hcg levels by gestational age according to the table below:

Quantitative testing of beta hCG levels helps to monitor the status of pregnancy, if the results of beta hCG levels for gestational age are too high or too low, there may be problems with the pregnancy. Low hCG levels can be caused by a miscarriage, ovulation, or an ectopic pregnancy. High hCG levels can be caused by multiple pregnancies, placental diseases, or Down syndrome when the amount of AP in the blood drops.
However, pregnant women do not need to worry too much about hCG levels because the statistics on hCG levels according to gestational age above are only approximate. According to the data table above, we can see that the beta hcg index at 4 weeks pregnant is from 5-426 mUI/ml, the lowest and highest index has a huge difference. Many women have low beta hCG levels but still have a healthy fetus. So it doesn't matter whether the hCG concentration is low or high at each time, but mainly whether the increase or decrease in hCG concentration follows physiological laws from time to time. If in the first 3 months, pregnant women have low hCG levels, it is necessary to monitor for 48-72 hours, whether the hCG levels increase. Pregnant women with abnormal changes in hCG levels should be examined and monitored by a doctor for timely treatment. The first 3 months are the most sensitive time during pregnancy. In order for mother and baby to be healthy, parents need to pay attention to:
Understand early signs of pregnancy, pregnancy poisoning, bleeding during pregnancy. Timely, correct and sufficient first prenatal check-up, avoiding too early/too late. Fetal malformation screening at 12 weeks detects dangerous fetal malformations that can be intervened early. Distinguish between normal vaginal bleeding and pathological vaginal bleeding for timely intervention to maintain pregnancy. Screening for thyroid disease in the first 3 months of pregnancy avoids dangerous risks before and during delivery. Vinmec currently has many maternity packages (12-27-36 weeks), in which the 12-week maternity package helps monitor the health of mother and baby right from the beginning of pregnancy, early detection and timely intervention of health issues. In addition to the usual services, the maternity monitoring program from 12 weeks has special services that other maternity packages do not have such as: Double Test or Triple Test to screen for fetal malformations; Quantitative angiogenesis factor test for preeclampsia; thyroid screening test; Rubella test; Testing for parasites transmitted from mother to child seriously affects the baby's brain and physical development after birth.

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