Endometrium Lining

A thick, healthy womb lining helps an embryo settle in. A scan shows us how yours is doing.

The endometrium is the lining of your womb. Each month it thickens to prepare for a pregnancy and sheds if there isn’t one. For conception, and particularly during fertility treatment, how thick it is and what it looks like can matter. An endometrium scan is a quick, painless way of finding out, and it often reassures women more than they expected.

Questions we hear every day

“What is the endometrium?”
It’s the inner lining of the womb. It’s the “bed” that an embryo needs to implant into. It changes through your cycle in response to your hormones.

“How thick should it be?”
It depends on the time of your cycle. It’s thin during your period and thickens as ovulation approaches. For fertility treatment, many clinics aim for a lining of roughly 7 mm or more around the time of ovulation or embryo transfer, but there’s no single perfect number, and women do get pregnant at a range of thicknesses. We’ll explain what your measurement means in context.

“What does the lining look like on a scan?”
In the first half of the cycle it often looks like three distinct lines (called a “triple-line pattern”), which is usually a good sign. After ovulation it looks brighter and more uniform. We’ll go through what we see.

“Why might my lining be thin?”
Possible reasons include low oestrogen, certain medicines (including some ovulation drugs), scarring in the womb, reduced blood flow, previous surgery or infection, and sometimes no clear reason. There are things we can look into and often treatments to try.

“Can anything else affect it?”
Yes. Polyps, fibroids, scar tissue or a womb that’s shaped differently can affect implantation. A scan can pick up some of these, and if we suspect something, we’ll recommend further tests.

“Do I need to be at a particular point in my cycle?”
Often, yes. We’ll tell you when to come, depending on why we’re checking: for example, around ovulation, or before an embryo transfer.

How we can help
-A transvaginal scan to measure and assess your womb lining
-A check for polyps, fibroids and scar tissue
-Lining monitoring through a cycle, including before embryo transfer
-Follicle tracking alongside the lining check
-Review of medicines and hormones that may affect your lining
-Consultation and blood tests, such as oestrogen levels, if useful
-Referral for further tests, such as a hysteroscopy, if needed
-Reports for your fertility clinic

When to book
If you’ve been advised to have your lining checked, if you’re preparing for embryo transfer, if you’ve had failed cycles, if you’re taking ovulation medication, or if you have unexplained bleeding or periods that have changed.

Please seek urgent medical help if you have sudden, severe pelvic pain or very heavy bleeding with dizziness.

Book an appointment online or call 061 609 777. We’ll take it from there.