My period is irregular can I get pregnant?

Hello as far as I get remember my period has always been irregular. I want to get pregnant but it seems everytime I have my period I don't get pregnant. I have tried the ovulation calender and have sex on the days it says I am most fertile and nothing. What do you recommend?

[John Kim, M.D.]

If you have the opportunity, I suggest seeing a fertility specialist called a Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility specialist. They can obtain a complete history from you, examine you, do blood tests of hormones, do ultrasound of your uterus and ovaries and determine why you are having irregular periods. The most common diagnosis for irregular periods is called polycystic ovarian syndrome or PCOS. Here is some general information from my website:
PCOS can affect 5% of all women and common symptoms include irregular menstrual cycles, increased growth of hair on the body, loss of hair on the head, acne, and weight gain. Based on the 2003 ESHRE/ASRM sponsored Consensus Workshop Group, PCOS is diagnosed in women who meet two of the three following criteria: ovarian dysfunction (not ovulating regularly), hyperandrogenism (increased male type hormones on lab testing or clinically increased hair growth), or polycystic ovaries on ultrasound (ovaries which show multiple small cysts on ultrasound). PCOS is a common cause of infertility and puts women at an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. There is also increased risk of insulin resistance, hypertension, and abnormalities of cholesterol and triglycerides in women with PCOS. Due to these risks, we advise our patients with PCOS to have the complete metabolic assessment with complete lipid panel testing and a two hour glucose tolerance test.