Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)
Pregnyl, Novarel, Ovitrelle, Ovidrel, Choriogonadotropin, Choragon, Choriogonadotropin alfa
Forms: Urine-derived hCG (e.g. Pregnyl, Novarel) and recombinant choriogonadotropin alfa (Ovitrelle).
A hormone that mimics LH, signaling the testes to make testosterone and support sperm production. A prescription fertility medicine.
Legal status: Prescription medicine, controlled in some countries (UK: Class C); prohibited in sport for men at all times (WADA S2.2.1), not for women.
What it gives
What people use it for and what the sources report. Strength is a general category from the literature: mild, clear or strong.
Purpose
Approved for hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and undescended testes in males and to trigger ovulation in women. In sport, taken during steroid use or after stopping, to help keep the testes working and maintain their size and fertility. Prescription only, under a doctor.
What people seek and what studies show
In healthy men given testosterone, low-dose hCG kept testosterone inside the testes near normal. In a small retrospective series of men on testosterone therapy, semen quality did not decline during follow-up, no one became azoospermic and 9 of 26 partners conceived. After steroid misuse, evidence that it helps restore sperm production comes only from case reports and small series.
Effects
Evidence: Approved medicine — studied in people for its medical use
Possible side effects
Possible does not mean certain: whether they appear depends on dose, duration, individual response and monitoring. Below — what to watch for and how to notice it early.
5 possible side effects
level · how often it is reportedWhat the levels mean
Level: general category from the literature, not your personal risk
How often
- common
- reported often
- possible
- reported in some people
- rare
- reported occasionally
How to lower the risks
For 3 of 5 possible side effects there are specific ways to lower the chance: everyday measures, supplements and options a doctor may consider. For the rest — general advice. No measure removes a risk completely.
Check estradiol by blood test before acting on symptoms; keep salt and body fat in check.
How each option helps (2)
- Regular blood tests — A sensitive estradiol test shows whether water retention or nipple tenderness really comes from high estrogen.
- Working with a doctor — Prescription estrogen control is safer when adjusted by lab results than by guesswork.
React early: see a doctor at the first lump, check estradiol and prolactin.
How each option helps (1)
- Working with a doctor — Early assessment of breast-tissue growth allows treatment before the change becomes permanent.
Products obtained without a prescription are often fake, mislabeled or non-sterile, and there is no way to check at home. For legal supplements, look for third-party testing (Informed Sport, NSF).
Low-level side effects
How each option helps (1)
- Working with a doctor — Tells harmless water retention from swelling due to heart, kidney or liver trouble; steroid labels warn that edema can come with heart failure.
Check-ups and blood tests
Which tests and check-ups to do and when. This is a guide — agree the exact schedule with your doctor.
Which doctors can help
Get medical help at once if
- A painful lump under the nipple or nipple discharge — see a doctor early, while it can still regress; a hard, painless or fixed lump, skin dimpling or bloody discharge — see a doctor promptly.
In an emergency, call your local emergency number.
For women
In women it is a fertility drug (ovulation trigger) with a risk of ovarian hyperstimulation. It isn't anabolic, and its label states it doesn't help weight loss.
Myth & fact
“hCG taken during steroid use keeps your natural testosterone production running.”
It keeps the testes working, but the pituitary stays shut down. After stopping steroids natural LH still has to recover, and hCG doesn't do that part.
Combinations
No specific combination notes for this substance yet. The stack check still adds up side effects that several substances share.
Sources
Possible side effects by body system, combinations, how to lower the risks and which tests to do — free.
Open the stack check