Why Is Letrozole Used in Fertility Treatment?

Letrozole is a drug that belongs to the class of medicines called aromatase inhibitors. Aromatase is an enzyme that aids in the production of estrogen in the body, and Letrozole is responsible for inhibiting aromatase and suppressing the production of estrogen.

Letrozole is a drug that acts on the pituitary gland to produce more FSH and LH hormones required to stimulate the ovaries to produce more follicles. Women who are anovulatory are benefited by this drug.

How Letrozole Works

Use of letrozole in fertility treatment leads to better chances of conceiving if administered exactly as per the doctor's advice. Letrozole  is taken once a day for five days. Depending on when a woman is due for her menses, the doctor advises on commencing this tablet. Some fertility experts suggest taking Letrozole from day2 onwards. Based on when the doctor commences this treatment, women are asked to have sex accordingly for better chances of getting pregnant.

• Treatment from day 3: If a woman starts the treatment from day 3, she is likely to ovulate sometime between day 14 and day 17 of her menstrual cycle. For conceiving, she is suggested to begin having sex with her partner before she ovulates. In this case, it would be best for her to have sex everyday or every alternate day commencing on day 11 and ending on day 18.
• Treatment from day 5: In this case, ovulation mostly occurs between days 16 and 19, and the woman is suggested to have sex between days 13 and 21 for best chance of getting pregnant.

When a woman starts taking Letrozole, the androgen produced in the body stops from getting converted to estrogen. When estrogen production is blocked or reduced, the pituitary gland is stimulated to produce more FSH to stimulate more ovarian follicles to mature and produce egg cells. In some cases, compared to normally ovulating women, others may produce more than one egg during ovulation, owing to the consumption of Letrozole.

Therefore, Letrozole is mainly used to stimulate the production of FSH, reduce the conversion of androgen to estrogen, and support better ovulation leading to a successful pregnancy.