By PulsHealth. Updated
Research reviewed .
What does an irregular-cycle assessment describe?
Irregular Menstrual Cycles records a Cycle Deviation assessment based on variability in logged cycle length. It is different from the day-to-day amount of bleeding and from having consistently long cycles.
Apple's documented definition uses a difference of at least 17 days between the shortest and longest cycles in the preceding six months. This Apple detection criterion should not be substituted for a clinical reference range. HealthKit stores the assessment after the user verifies the flagged history.
Which dates belong in a cycle-length comparison?
| Date or interval | Appropriate use | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Resolved starts of successive periods | Reconstruct documented cycle lengths when logging is complete | Treating every flow entry as a new cycle |
| Saved deviation interval | Locate the recorded assessment in the timeline | Reading its duration as the shortest or longest cycle |
| Gap between deviation records | Describe saved assessment spacing | Treating that gap as cycle variability |
Shortest and longest values are especially sensitive to missed periods, mistaken start dates and duplicate source entries. A single gap in logging can make a reconstructed longest cycle misleading. Preserve the original records and explain any reconciliation rather than silently discarding unusual dates.
Is the category value a variability score?
No. Code 0, notApplicable is a generic category marker, not a numeric irregularity score or a negative result. Averaging codes or labeling large numeric values as clinical outliers has no meaningful interpretation here. The record does not include the shortest and longest cycle lengths as its category value.
A wide assessment interval does not identify individual bleeding observations or explain the cause of irregularity.
What did the example data show?
There were no irregular-cycle category records in the reporting year. Measured interval spans, source differences and saved assessment cadence were unavailable. With no primary records, actual relationships to menstrual flow or other cycle deviations could not be analyzed. No variability chart or clinical conclusion is inferred from the empty result.
What affects whether an assessment is available?
The history must be checked for logging completeness. Apple Support says recent or ongoing logged cycle factors disable detection, and users aged 40 or older may receive notifications about patterns suggestive of perimenopause or other conditions. The category itself does not determine which explanation applies; review the accurate history with a healthcare professional.
Is this type collected by PulsHealth?
This identifier is documented here but is absent from PulsHealth’s current sync catalog. An empty database result cannot establish whether the phone contains this assessment.
Understanding your records
Recording frequency, source and coverage affect what you can conclude from this data. Read the recording guide.