Ovulation is the process by which an ovary produces and releases an egg.

The egg develops within the ovary in a small, fluid-filled sac called a follicle. When the egg is mature, this sac ruptures, releasing the egg from the ovary. The fingerlike projections on the nearby fallopian tube sweep the egg into the tube, where it begins to inch toward the uterus. If the egg is fertilized by a sperm, the fertilized egg moves along the tube to the uterus and becomes implanted in the rich uterine lining, where it grows for the next nine months.

If the egg does not become fertilized, the uterine lining breaks down and passes, along with the unfertilized egg, out of the cervix, through the vagina, and out of the body as the menstrual discharge.

Ovulation is regulated by a complex system of hormonal and chemical secretions from the ovaries, the hypothalamus (part of the brain), and the pituitary gland (the master gland, which controls most hormonal secretions). Ovulation and menstruation begin during puberty, which usually occurs between the ages of 9 and 14, and continues every month (except during pregnancy) until menopause (around age 50).

One way to recognize when ovulation is happening is to take the body temperature with a basal thermometer (a special thermometer that will show even slight changes in body temperature) before rising in the morning. In most women, the body temperature rises slightly soon after ovulation occurs each month and does not return to normal until the menstrual flow begins. Another way is to count 14 days forward from the first day of the last menstrual period in an average 28-day cycle (count 15 days for a cycle that is normally 29 days long, 16 days for a cycle that is normally 30 days long, and so on). However, this method is less accurate than the thermometer method because the length of the menstrual cycle can vary from month to month. Some women feel abdominal cramps during ovulation.

A sperm that has been released into the vagina as long as two days before the release of a ripe egg can still fertilize it; and an egg, once released, is capable of being fertilized for about two days. Because of this variability, there is a period of four to ten days in each menstrual cycle during which a woman can become pregnant.



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