- Support for "communication with partner", the greatest stress in fertility
- Enhanced functions for "various records and schedule management," which is a major burden in fertility management
- Information sharing among couples" and "acquisition of knowledge necessary for fertility control", which are the most important aspects of fertility control, are possible.
Konotoki" introduced here is a fertility support application that can be shared with couples. In addition to notifying couples of the days when they are most likely to conceive, it also provides support for recording their physical condition and fertility treatments, and offers columns to deepen their knowledge about fertility. The app won the Excellence Award in the BabyTech® Award Japan 2020 Fertility and Pregnancy category. The BabyTech.jp editorial staff then interviewed Jun Tanimoto and Tsuchiya (titles below omitted) of Amane Factory Corporation, the company that developed Konotoki, to learn more about the service, its development, and future plans.
(We spoke to...)
Amane Factory Co.
Jun Tanimoto
Amane Factory Co.
Hayato Tsuchiya
Communication with partner" is the most stressful part of pregnancy
Editorial:Thank you very much for your time today. Could you begin by giving us an overview of Konotoki and its features?
Tanimoto:Konotoki is a "fertility support application" that couples can share. Currently, it is said that 1 in 5.5 couples are suffering from the inability to have children. In such cases, the first step is to try to conceive in accordance with the timing of the menstrual cycle, but some women say that it is extremely stressful to tell their partners about the timing from a woman who knows when she is ovulating. On the other hand, men also want to have children, but they do not know when the right timing is, and they find it difficult to ask directly, and they also feel pressured by women who strongly encourage them in their fertility activities. Konotoki's service aims to solve such problems for both men and women.
Editorial:I went through infertility treatment myself, so I understand very much. ......
Tanimoto:There are three main things that Konotoki can do. The first is "ovulation date prediction," in which the ovulation date is predicted based on a woman's registered menstrual period start date and menstrual cycle, and communicated to the couple. In addition, for couples who are in the advanced stages of fertility treatment, there is a function to manage and record their fertility schedule, as they may have to record their basal body temperature and physical condition in detail, or go to the hospital to receive injections or medication. These physical condition and hospital visit records can also be viewed by the male partner. Finally, we have prepared contents that both men and women can learn about fertility, such as the mechanism of pregnancy, what ovulation day is, and how to take timing tips.
Editorial:The key point is that "we can share a variety of information on fertility."
Storks" to support expectant couples
You'll be amazed at how much you can do for free! This is a highly functional application that will surprise you!
As for the function to record one's physical condition, if a measurement device can import information such as basal body temperature, weight, and blood pressure to the standard iPhone application "Health Care," the measurement data can be automatically transferred to Konotoki from that device. The standard Android application "Google Fit" is not linked to basal body temperature, but weight and blood pressure can be imported in the same way. Konotoki also graphs changes in basal body temperature during each menstrual cycle and overlays them with the previous cycle. This feature may be the most popular feature of Konotoki.
You can also easily keep a record of your physical condition, which is important for fertility control.
Editorial:What can we learn by overlaying a graph of basal body temperature?
Tsuchiya:The period from the start of the last menstrual period to the start of the next menstrual period is generally called "one cycle. By overlaying the graphs showing changes in basal body temperature for the "previous cycle" and "previous two cycles," you can first determine whether your menstrual cycle is stable or not. Konotoki allows you to superimpose graphs for up to six cycles.
Tanimoto:Furthermore, by looking at this graph of your own basal body temperature changes, for example, if you are trying to conceive a second child, you can aim for timing in accordance with the graph of the last time you were able to conceive (......). By looking at the past graphs, you can see when your body temperature rose, or in other words, when you ovulated, which makes it easier to get the timing right for this cycle. Konotoki also displays the ovulation date prediction based on the Ogino method, so by combining this with the basal body temperature graph, you can aim for timing that is more suitable for you.
Editorial:Generally speaking, the best timing is one to two days before the day of ovulation, so it is indeed easy to understand by superimposing the past and present graphs. So, it is easy to understand by superimposing the past and present graphs. So today is the best timing. ......
Basal body temperature graphs for up to 6 cycles can be superimposed and compared.
Tanimoto:In addition, regarding the fertility treatment-related recording function, you can freely register your physical condition and the medications you are taking, and once registered, you can record them with a single tap, just like a stamp, from the next time. The app also has a function that notifies you so that you do not forget to take your medications.
Editorial:My wife had to take a lot of medications during her infertility treatment, so this is a nice feature. ......
Tanimoto:With Konotoki, even the men can tell that the timing is right around here ......, but they can also send messages firmly between partners and promise to take care of the timing. Although you can send messages with any text you like, we have basically limited the text to six patterns so that messages that are difficult to say can be conveyed with a single tap. For example, like a LINE stamp, if a woman sends "I'll be waiting for you," a man can simply send "I'm leaving" to make an appointment.
Editorial:That's very casual!
A heart mark around the stork when the timing is promised!
Tsuchiya:Another recently added feature that has been well received is the ability to compare images taken with the "ovulation test kit" side by side on the app.
Editorial:Would you say you are comparing ovulation tests?
Tsuchiya:An ovulation test can be used to determine when ovulation has occurred. The more likely it is that ovulation has occurred, the darker the color of the line on the test strip will be, and by comparing multiple strips side by side, it is easier to see the changes. Like the Ogino method and basal body temperature graph mentioned earlier, this is another way to check the menstrual cycle, and some people try to figure out timing with a higher degree of accuracy by using all three methods.
Tanimoto:This feature was just released in June 2021, but we have been receiving feedback on social networking sites saying, "It's amazing that you can do this!" We have been receiving feedback on social networking sites that this is a great thing to do. Pregnancy care is a very large number of detailed tasks for women, and we are always looking for ways to pick up on each of these small details and help them with the application.
An application born from "the earnest voices of many people
Editorial:When we were pregnant, we wished we had an app like this ....... When was Konotoki released?
Tsuchiya:Konotoki's predecessor application, called "Storks," has been in release for about seven years. Conotoki, on the other hand, was released in March 2020.
Editorial:What is the difference between the two applications?
Tanimoto:Basically, Storks was a simple application with only three functions: predicting menstrual information using the Ogino method, a sharing function that allowed couples to view this information together, and a message function that allowed couples to send one-tap promises for timing. Of course, you could also record your basal body temperature and other data, but there was no function called ...... to overlay and compare the graphs for each cycle. Konotoki was developed under the supervision of an embryologist, who is an expert in fertility management, and is more specialized for fertility management.
Information and records necessary for fertility management can be listed in the "Calendar".
This evolution was made in response to requests from users for more fertility support. However, if we included functions such as "fertility treatment management" in Stork, it would be a surprise to beginners in fertility management who may not be able to have children easily and may want to take a look at their menstrual cycle (......), which would put pressure on them. We decided to separate the apps because we felt that this would be a very effective way to manage the fertility treatment. Therefore, Stork is still in operation today.
Sharing data on fertility" can motivate the men's side
Editorial:How many people use Konotoki? And what kind of feedback do you get?
Tsuchiya:The number of users is currently 130,000 downloads. The utilization rate is high, with more than 60% of users continuing to use the service.
Tanimoto:Comments include, "I am glad that my partner has become more cooperative," and "My partner has started to say to me, 'Is it time? I am happy that my partner has become more cooperative," or "My partner has started to say to me, 'It's about time.
Editorial:Yes, if you look at the graph, that seems to be the trend!
Tanimoto:Men seem to like looking at the data and find it interesting. Some have said that this has been very helpful, and others have said that they appreciate the ability to superimpose graphs for free and that the app is very itchy to get to the bottom of things.
Just like in pregnancy, where steady effort is the key to success, the app will grow steadily and steadily.
Editorial:What will happen in the future?
Tanimoto:There are no major changes, but we believe there are many small areas that can be brushed up. We would like to pick up on what users would like to see and add features in detail.
Editorial:You can choose from a variety of languages when installing, but are you thinking of expanding overseas?
Tanimoto:That one is not for overseas users, but for international couples living in Japan. Surprisingly, we have international couples among our users, so we decided to make it in a language that is easy for each partner to read, so all the columns and advice in the app are translated as well.
Editorial:That's a lot of work, isn't it?
Tanimoto:I believe that we have no choice but to work steadily because the accumulation of such small efforts will lead to results in pregnancy care. It is a process that leads to the birth of a life.
In the app, you can read a variety of advice for fertility.
After the interview
Looking back on the reporter's communication with his wife during his pregnancy, the interview was very reflective. Since the men did not know when the timing was right, I feel that they often put their work schedules on hold and things did not go well. We also did not know much about the great burden placed on women due to a lack of knowledge about fertility. After all, "smooth communication" and "acquiring the necessary knowledge" are indispensable when engaging in fertility management. We hoped that many expectant couples would make use of this application.
KONOTOKI" Official Web Site
https://www.konotoki-apps.com/index.html.ja
