Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Case Reports From Women Using A Quantitative Hormone Monitor To Track The Perimenopause Transition, Maria Meyers, Richard J. Fehring, Mary Schneider

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

The fertility tracking of menstrual cycles during perimenopause with a quantitative hormone monitor is a novel undertaking. Women in regular menstrual cycles have been tracking their fertility using different biomarkers since the 1960′s. Presently, there are newer electronic hormonal devices used to track fertility that provide more exact and objective data to help delineate the fertile time frame of a woman’s cycle. These devices measure quantitative levels of estrogen, the luteinizing hormone, progesterone, and follicle-stimulating hormone, all of which occur at varying levels during the menstrual cycle. As women advance toward menopause, their cycles vary in length, and their hormones …

Effectiveness Of A Natural Family Planning Service Program, Richard Fehring, Mary Schneider

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: The aims of this study were to determine and compare extended use-effectiveness of an online nurse-managed fertility education service program among women (and subgroups of women) seeking to avoid pregnancy.

Study Design and Methods: This was a 24-month prospective study of a university-based online Web site with 663 nonbreastfeeding women using an online charting system to avoid pregnancy. Participants tracked their fertility online with either cervical mucus monitoring, electronic hormonal fertility monitoring, or both fertility indicators. Unintended pregnancies were validated by professional nurses.

Results: Participants had a mean age of 30.4 years (SD = 6.3) and mean 1.7 children …

Couple Beads: An Integrated Method Of Natural Family Planning, George Mulcaire-Jones, Richard J. Fehring, Megan Bradshaw, Karen Brower, Gonzaga Lubega, Paskazia Lubega

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Various fertility indicators are used by natural family planning methods to identify the fertile and infertile phases of a woman's menstrual cycle: mucus observations, cycle-day probabilities, basal body temperature readings, and hormonal measures of LH and estrogen. Simplified NFP methods generally make use of a single fertility indicator such as cycle-day probabilities (Standard Days Method) or mucus observations (Billings Ovulation Method). The Couple Bead Method integrates the two simplest fertility indicators, cycle-day probabilities and mucus observations, expanding its applicability to all women, regardless of cycle regularity and length. In determining cycle-day probabilities, the Couple Bead Method relies on a new …

Use Of Ovulation Predictor Kits As Adjuncts When Using Fertility Awareness Methods (Fams): A Pilot Study, Rene Letva, Ula Burban, Edmond Kyrillos, Richard Fehring, Robin Mclaren, Catherine Dalzell, Elizabeth Tanguay

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: Difficult clinical signs such as confusing cervical mucus or erratic basal body temperature can make the use of fertility awareness methods (FAMs) difficult in some cases. The goal of this study was to assess the feasibility of using a cheap urinary luteinizing hormone (LH)–surge identification kit as an adjunct to identify the infertile phase after ovulation when facing these scenarios.

Methods: The study used a block-allocation, crossover, 2-arm methodology (LH kit/FAM vs FAM only). Comparison of the 2 arms was done with regard to the accuracy of identification (yes/no) of the luteal phase in each cycle as confirmed by …

Spiritual Care Of Couples Practicing Natural Family Planning, Richard Fehring, Dana Rodriguez

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

There are few studies that have investigated the spiritual problems of couples practicing natural family planning (NFP). The purpose of this paper is to analyze the spiritual problems and interventions of couples who were taught NFP by means of a professional online Web-based support system. Responses from this online system and its forums were categorized according to spiritual responses, spiritual problems, and spiritual interventions to the practice of NFP. Themes addressed included spiritual care in regards to decisions about the transmission of new life, difficulties in dealing with chastity and abstinence, bioethical problems related to pregnancy and illness, end of …

Promoting Natural Family Planning, Richard Jerome Fehring

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Efficacy Of The Marquette Method Of Natural Family Planning, Richard Fehring, Mary Schneider, Mary Lee Barron

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: To determine the effectiveness of the Marquette Method (MM) of natural family planning (NFP) as a method of avoiding pregnancy. Study Design and Methods: This was a 12-month retrospective evaluation of the MM system of NFP. Two hundred and four women (mean age, 28.6 years) and their male partners (mean age, 30.3 years) who sought to learn a method for avoiding pregnancy with the MM from four clinical sites were taught to track their fertility by self-observation of cervical mucus, by use of an electronic monitor that measures urinary levels of estrone-3-glucuronide and luteinizing hormone, and by use of …

Efficacy Of The Marquette Method Of Natural Family Planning, Richard Fehring, Mary Schneider, Mary Lee Barron

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: To determine the effectiveness of the Marquette Method (MM) of natural family planning (NFP) as a method of avoiding pregnancy.

Study Design and Methods: This was a 12-month retrospective evaluation of the MM system of NFP. Two hundred and four women (mean age, 28.6 years) and their male partners (mean age, 30.3 years) who sought to learn a method for avoiding pregnancy with the MM from four clinical sites were taught to track their fertility by self-observation of cervical mucus, by use of an electronic monitor that measures urinary levels of estrone-3-glucuronide and luteinizing hormone, and by use of …

Variability In The Phases Of The Menstrual Cycle, Richard Fehring, Mary Schneider, Kathleen Raviele

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Objective: To determine variability in the phases of the menstrual cycle among healthy, regularly cycling women. Design: A prospective descriptive study of a new data set with biological markers to estimate parameters of the menstrual cycles. Participants: One hundred forty one healthy women (mean age 29 years) who monitored 3 to 13 menstrual cycles with an electronic fertility monitor and produced 1,060 usable cycles of data. Measures and Outcomes: Variability in the length of the menstrual cycle and of the follicular, fertile, and luteal phases, and menses. The estimated day of ovulation and end of the fertile phase was the …

New Low- And High-Tech Calendar Methods Of Family Planning, Richard Fehring

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Calendar-based methods are not usually considered effective or useful methods of family planning among health professionals. However, new “high-” and “low”-tech calendar methods have been developed, which are easy to teach, to use, and may be useful in helping couples avoid pregnancy. The low-tech models are based on a fixed-day calendar system. The high-tech models are based on monitoring urinary metabolites of female reproductive hormones. Both systems have high levels of satisfaction. This article describes these new models of family planning and the research on their effectiveness. The author proposes a new algorithm for determining the fertile phase of the …

A Comparison Of The Fertile Phase As Determined By The Clearplan Easy Fertility Monitor™ And Self-Assessment Of Cervical Mucus, Richard Fehring, Kathleen Raviele, Mary Schneider

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

The purpose of this study was to compare the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle as determined by the Clearplan Easy Fertility Monitor (CPEFM) with self-monitoring of cervical mucus. One-hundred women (mean age = 29.4 years) observed their cervical mucus and monitored their urine for estrogen and luteinizing hormone metabolites with the CPEFM on a daily basis for 2–6 cycles and generated 378 cycles of data; of these, 347 (92%) had a CPEFM peak. The beginning of the fertile window was, on average, day 11.8 (SD = 3.4) by the monitor and day 9.9 (SD = 3.0) by cervical mucus …

Accuracy Of The Peak Day Of Cervical Mucus As A Biological Marker Of Fertility, Richard Fehring

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

The (PD) peak day of cervical mucus is an important biologic marker for the self-determination of the optimal time of fertility in a woman’s menstrual cycle. The purpose of this article is to provide evidence (literature and empiric) for the accuracy of the PD of cervical mucus as a biologic marker of peak fertility and the estimated day of ovulation. An analysis of data from four published studies that compared the self-determination of the PD of cervical mucus with the urinary luteinizing hormone (LH) surge was conducted. The four studies yielded 108 menstrual cycle charts from 53 women participants. The …

Evaluation Of The Lady Free Biotester® In Determining The Fertile Period, Richard Fehring, Nancy Gaska

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Small hand-held microscopes have been developed for self-observation of salivary ferning patterns to detect the fertile time of a woman’s menstrual cycle. The purpose of this study was to evaluate one such microscope, the Lady Free Biotester^®, by comparing it with the self-observation of cervical-vaginal mucus and with the self-detection of luteinizing hormone (LH) in the urine. Twelve natural family planning teachers (average age 34.6 years) observed their cervical-vaginal mucus, tested their urine for LH, and observed salivary and cervical-vaginal mucus ferning patterns (with the Lady Free Biotester) for two menstrual cycles. Data indicated that there was a …