Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH)
Anti-Müllerian Hormone is produced by the small developing follicles in the ovaries, so the amount in your blood tracks the size of the egg pool you have left. It is the most reliable single blood marker of ovarian reserve and, unlike FSH, is stable enough across the cycle to be taken on any day.
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2 to 3 days
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What the Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH) test tells you
Anti-Müllerian Hormone is made by the granulosa cells of small growing follicles in the ovary: the pool of follicles that has been recruited but not yet selected for ovulation. Because the number of those follicles falls steadily with age, the concentration of AMH in blood gives a good estimate of how large the remaining egg pool is. That is the whole of what it measures, and understanding that boundary is what keeps the result useful: AMH is a measure of quantity, not of quality, and not of your chance of conceiving this month.
Its clearest role is in fertility treatment. Before IVF, AMH predicts how the ovaries will respond to stimulation better than almost any other single marker, which is why clinics use it to choose a drug protocol and a starting dose, and to anticipate either a poor response or an excessive one. It is also used when someone wants a picture of where they stand before delaying pregnancy or considering egg freezing, and it has a second, quite separate use in the assessment of PCOS: since 2023 the international guideline accepts AMH in adults as an alternative to counting follicles on ultrasound, though not in adolescents or within about eight years of a first period, where it is not specific enough. A practical advantage over FSH is timing. FSH has to be drawn on days 2 to 5 of the cycle to mean anything, whereas an AMH test at home in Dubai can be booked for whichever morning suits you, which matters a great deal when cycles are irregular or absent: exactly the situation in which ovarian reserve is most often queried.
What AMH cannot do is worth stating as plainly. It cannot tell you whether the eggs you have are capable of producing a healthy pregnancy, because that tracks with age rather than with number. It is a poor predictor of natural conception: in women with regular cycles, a low AMH has not been shown to reduce the chance of conceiving without treatment, so a low result is not a reason to panic or to rush into treatment on its own. It cannot date your menopause, only shift the average across a population. And the numbers themselves are method-dependent and strongly age-dependent, so a value only means something read against an age-specific range, ideally from the same laboratory each time. Your result should be interpreted by a doctor alongside your age, your cycle history and, where relevant, an ultrasound.
This test is commonly ordered before IVF or other fertility treatment, when planning a pregnancy later or considering egg freezing, when irregular or absent periods are being investigated, and as a supporting marker in the assessment of PCOS in adults.
- Predicting IVF response
Before fertility treatment, AMH predicts how the ovaries will respond to stimulation better than almost any other single marker, which is what guides the choice of protocol and starting dose.
- Planning ahead
For anyone weighing up when to try for a pregnancy, or considering egg freezing, it gives an objective picture of the egg pool as it stands now.
- Supporting a PCOS assessment
In adults, the 2023 international guideline accepts AMH as an alternative to counting follicles on ultrasound when defining polycystic ovarian morphology.
- Testable on any day
AMH is stable across the cycle, so it can be drawn whenever suits you, which is the practical advantage over FSH when cycles are irregular or absent.
Reasons your doctor may request the Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH) test
Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.
Fertility planning
- Planning IVF or other fertility treatment, where AMH helps predict ovarian response and guides the stimulation protocol.
- Thinking about delaying pregnancy, or considering egg freezing, and wanting a picture of the current egg pool.
Investigating irregular cycles
- Irregular, infrequent or absent periods being investigated alongside FSH, LH, prolactin and thyroid tests.
- Supporting the assessment of PCOS in adults, where AMH is an accepted alternative to counting follicles on ultrasound.
After treatment affecting the ovaries
- Follow-up after ovarian surgery, chemotherapy or pelvic radiotherapy, where the remaining reserve may have been reduced.
AMH is read against your age. A result in the Very low band, reported in ng/mL, or in the Low band points to a smaller remaining egg pool than average, which chiefly predicts how the ovaries would respond to IVF stimulation. Low normal sits at the lower end of the usual range for age, and Normal is the usual range in reproductive years. A result in the High band is most often seen in polycystic ovary syndrome, where many small follicles each add to the total, and is also common at younger ages. AMH measures quantity, not egg quality; it does not predict natural conception and cannot date your menopause. Hormonal contraception lowers it modestly, ovarian surgery and chemotherapy reduce it, and high-dose biotin supplements interfere with the assay. Your doctor reads it with your age, your cycle history and, where relevant, an ultrasound.
Medically reviewed by Dr Nirupama Sabhapathy
Ranges are a guide: your physician interprets your result alongside your symptoms and history.
What a higher result can point to
- Polycystic ovary syndrome, where a large number of small follicles each contribute to the total: this is the commonest reason for a high result.
- Younger age, since the remaining egg pool is naturally larger.
- Granulosa cell tumours of the ovary, which are rare but do produce AMH.
- Ordinary individual variation: a high-normal value in someone with regular cycles usually needs no action at all.
What a lower result can point to
- Advancing age, which is the ordinary and expected reason for a falling AMH.
- Diminished ovarian reserve, and primary ovarian insufficiency.
- Ovarian surgery, particularly for endometriomas, and chemotherapy or pelvic radiotherapy.
- Current hormonal contraception, which lowers the reading modestly while it is being used.
- High-dose biotin supplements, which interfere with the assay rather than with the ovary.
These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests: your doctor decides what it means for you.
What this test cannot tell you
- AMH measures quantity, not quality. It cannot tell you whether the eggs remaining are capable of producing a healthy pregnancy: that tracks with age.
- It is a poor predictor of natural conception. In women with regular cycles, a low AMH has not been shown to reduce the chance of conceiving without treatment.
- It cannot date your menopause. It shifts the average timing across a population but cannot say when an individual will stop having periods.
- Assays are not interchangeable and results are strongly age-dependent, so a value only means something against the right age-specific range and, ideally, the same laboratory each time.
Risks of the blood draw
- Mild bruising or brief soreness where the needle went in.
- Occasional lightheadedness, which settles after a few minutes of rest.
- Bleeding or infection at the site, which is rare with sterile single-use equipment.
- 1AMH reflects how many eggs are left, not their quality and not your chance of conceiving this month.
- 2It is stable across the menstrual cycle, so the sample can be taken on any day: unlike FSH, which is tied to days 2 to 5.
- 3Its strongest use is predicting how the ovaries will respond to IVF stimulation, which is why fertility clinics rely on it.
- 4A high AMH is common and expected in PCOS, where many small follicles each add to the total.
- 5Hormonal contraception, recent ovarian surgery and high-dose biotin supplements all move the number, so context matters more than the figure alone.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about the Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH) test. Can't find what you're looking for?
Talk to our team→The AMH test is AED 240 at Intel Lab, which includes a doctor-reviewed report. Home collection anywhere in Dubai is free when your order comes to AED 300 or more or includes a package; below that, an AED 100 home collection fee applies (AED 50 for a lab walk-in). There is no consultation fee to book it.
Yes. A DHA-licensed nurse comes to your home or office anywhere in Dubai, takes a single serum sample, and the report reaches you in 2 to 3 days. Because AMH does not need to be timed to your cycle, you can pick whichever morning suits you.
No. AMH needs no fasting and you can take your usual medicines. The one preparation worth knowing is biotin: if you take high-dose biotin supplements, stop them 48 hours before the draw, because biotin interferes with the assay.
Any day. Unlike FSH, which has to be drawn on days 2 to 5, AMH is stable enough across the cycle that timing does not matter: you can even be tested during your period. That is why it is the easier test when cycles are irregular or have stopped.
Most often it means the remaining egg pool is smaller than average for your age, and the commonest reason is simply age itself. It predicts a weaker response to IVF stimulation. It does not mean you cannot conceive naturally, and in women with regular cycles a low AMH has not been shown to reduce the chance of conceiving without treatment.
The commonest explanation is polycystic ovary syndrome, where a large number of small follicles each add to the total. A high result also signals a strong response to IVF stimulation, which is useful to know in advance because it carries a risk of over-response. Younger age alone raises it too.
No, and this is the most common misunderstanding about it. AMH counts eggs, it does not judge them. Egg quality tracks with age rather than number, and a normal AMH is not a guarantee of fertility any more than a low one is a barrier to it. It is one input a doctor reads alongside your age, your cycle history and your partner's assessment.
Not on its own. PCOS is diagnosed against international criteria requiring at least two of three features, and since 2023 AMH is accepted in adults as an alternative to counting follicles on ultrasound for one of those three. It is not recommended for this purpose in adolescents or within about eight years of a first period, where it is not specific enough.
It lowers it modestly while you are taking it, as do the implant and hormonal coils, and the effect reverses after stopping. It is far less of a problem than it is for the cycle hormones, so testing on the pill is usually still worthwhile: just tell us you are on it so the result is read in context. Never stop contraception for a blood test without speaking to your doctor.
2 to 3 days. The report is delivered as a secure digital document with a physician's annotation in plain language.
Not for an individual. AMH falls as menopause approaches and shifts the average timing across a population, but the spread around that average is far too wide to date any one person's menopause from a single number.
No supplement or diet has been shown to increase the size of the egg pool. A reading can move a little between tests because of assay variation or hormonal contraception, but the underlying reserve does not go back up. Be sceptical of anything sold on the promise that it will.
AMH, for most purposes. It predicts IVF response more reliably, varies less between cycles, and can be drawn on any day, whereas FSH is only interpretable on days 2 to 5 and swings from one cycle to the next. Doctors often request both, with estradiol, when building a full picture.
It is not part of a routine male fertility workup. AMH is produced by the testes and is occasionally used in specialist paediatric and endocrine assessments, but for male fertility a semen analysis is the test that answers the question.
Not currently. AMH is booked as an individual test at AED 240 and can be added to any package or home visit: a common pairing is with the PCOS profile or the Female Fertility panel, so everything is taken in one draw.
A single serum sample, collected in a plain SST tube by a DHA-licensed nurse. It is one ordinary blood draw, and it can be combined with any other test you are booking at the same visit.