Taking a home pregnancy test can be exciting, but it also may be stressful. That's especially true if you're not sure whether you should trust the results. Know when and how to take a home pregnancy test. And learn some of the possible drawbacks of home testing.
accuracy of a home pregnancy test
Download Zip: https://urlcod.com/2vKbqz
The timing of ovulation makes a difference in the accuracy of a home pregnancy test. And ovulation can change from month to month. A fertilized egg also can implant in the uterus at different times. That can affect the timing of when HCG starts to be made and when it can be found with a home pregnancy test. Irregular menstrual cycles also can affect pregnancy test results, as they make it hard to figure out when a period should start.
For most home pregnancy tests, you put the end of the test in your urine stream, dip the test in a container of urine or put several drops of urine onto the test. A few minutes later, the result appears. It's often a plus or a minus sign, the words "yes" or "no," one line or two lines, or the words "pregnant" or "not pregnant."
Many home pregnancy tests claim to be 99% accurate. But home pregnancy tests differ in their ability to find a pregnancy in people who have recently missed a period. If you get a negative test result, but you still think you might be pregnant, take another test one week after your missed period or contact your health care provider.
Fertility medication or other medicine that contains HCG might affect home pregnancy test results. Most medicines, though, including antibiotics and birth control pills, don't affect the accuracy of home pregnancy tests.
A false-positive might happen if you had a pregnancy loss soon after the fertilized egg attached to the uterine lining. You also may get a false-positive if you take a pregnancy test soon after taking fertility medicine that contains HCG. Problems with the ovaries and menopause also might lead to a false-positive test result.
There are several reasons why you might take a pregnancy test. You could be trying to get pregnant and hoping for a positive result. You might have experienced an issue with your birth control. You might even be about to have a medical procedure or start a new medication that could be complicated by pregnancy. No matter what the reason, if you ever have any questions about your test results, the best thing to do is reach out to your healthcare provider.
According to pregnancy kit manufacturers, most at-home pregnancy tests are 98% to 99% accurate when you use them exactly as instructed. Positive results can be trusted, but you can get a false negative result if you take the test too soon.
Each home pregnancy test is different. Read the instruction manual carefully. It will tell you how many minutes to wait for your result. In most cases, you can expect to wait three minutes for your result. Keep in mind that if you wait too long to check your result, it may be inaccurate.
Manufacturers who market tests in both Europe and the USA tend to conform to these definitions across both markets (e.g. Clearblue, First Response, and EPT brands). Device accuracy, which is usually considered to be the percentage of correct detection of negative and positive results (at concentrations of hCG greater than test sensitivity) using urine samples from women seeking to know pregnancy status, are also often calculated. However, it is unclear as to whether other tests available in Germany conform to these definitions and it is therefore not possible to make objectivecomparisons between tests based on their packaging claims.
Unfortunately, no recent studies have investigated home pregnancy test performance, and indeed, there are no historical studies evaluating the myriad tests now available on the German market. In the absence of any available data on test performance and the lack of standardisation for evaluating test credentials, any declaration of test accuracy on the package labelling is potentially misleading.
The type of test format is another factor that can influence the accuracy of pregnancy tests when used at home. Home pregnancy tests are available in three main formats: strip, cassette and midstream test sticks. Strip tests have no casing or sample application wick; they therefore require women to collect a urine sample and then dip the small strip-like device into the sample until the urine reaches a prescribed line on the strip. The cassette format requires women to collect a urine sample, following which the user has to add a small quantity of the collected urine to thecassette-like test device using a plastic bulb supplied with the test. Both the strip and cassette test formats were primarily designed to be used by healthcare professionals in a clinical setting. However, they are also available for women to use at home. In contrast, the midstream test stick format was specifically developed to enable women to carry out pregnancy tests easily at home. Midstream test sticks consist of a stick with an absorbent wick at one end, which is placed in the urine stream or dipped into collected urine to obtain a sample.
Another cause of observed false negative results for home pregnancy tests can be due to unusually high concentrations of hCGβcf, the core fragment of β-hCG, which can occur in later stages of pregnancy 39. Tests recently cleared for marketing in the USA by the Food and Drugs Administration have been required to demonstrate that they do not produce false negative results when used in later pregnancy. European guidelines require manufacturers to do their own risk assessments; however, specific performance requirements are not defined in the directive.More prescriptive European guidelines would be beneficial to ensure that similar risks are taken into consideration by all manufacturers.
A pregnancy test can tell whether you're pregnant by checking a sample of your urine (pee) or blood for a specific hormone. The hormone is called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). High levels of hCG are a sign of pregnancy. hCG increases quickly in the first ten weeks after a fertilized egg attaches to the inside wall of the uterus.
Urine tests for pregnancy are most accurate when you do the test a week or two after you've missed your menstrual period. If you take a urine test too close to the time you got pregnant, the test could say that you are not pregnant even when you really are. That's because your body may not yet have made enough hCG to show up on the test.
You can have an hCG urine test at your health care provider's office or you can do the test yourself with an at-home test kit. These tests are basically the same, so many people use a home pregnancy test before calling their provider. If you follow the instructions carefully, home pregnancy tests are about 97-99% accurate. They can give you the results in minutes.
Blood tests for pregnancy can be done at your provider's office or a lab. These tests can find very small amounts of hCG, so they can accurately show whether you're pregnant before you've missed your period. But hCG blood tests aren't commonly used to check for pregnancy. That's because urine tests are less expensive, very accurate, and provide quicker results than blood tests. hCG blood test results may take hours to more than a day.
You may need this test if you think you're pregnant. Symptoms of pregnancy vary from person to person. The most common sign of early pregnancy is a missed period. Other common signs of early pregnancy may include:
Home pregnancy tests are quick and easy to use. You can buy a home pregnancy test kit without a prescription. The kits include test sticks or strips that react to hCG in your urine. The steps for doing a test depend on the brand, so it's very important to follow the instructions that come with your test. For most test kits, you'll either:
After waiting a certain number of minutes, you'll check your results on the test stick or strip. The instructions will tell you what to look for. In general, to get the most accurate results with any home pregnancy test, you'll need to:
If you're doing a urine test, don't drink large amounts of fluid before collecting your sample. That could dilute the hCG in your urine, and it may not show up on the test. Otherwise, you don't need any special preparations for a pregnancy test that uses urine or blood.
A negative result means hCG wasn't found in your sample, so you may not be pregnant. But a negative result doesn't always mean you're not pregnant. If you did a home urine test too soon, your body may not have made enough hCG to show up the test.
hCG levels increase every day during early pregnancy, so it's a good idea to repeat the test again in a week. If you get negative (not pregnant) results on two home tests, but you still think you're pregnant, call your provider. If you get a negative result on a test that your provider does, ask your provider if you need another test.
A positive result means that hCG was found in your sample. That usually means that you're pregnant. It's important to see your provider as soon as possible to make sure you get the right care. If you did a home test, your provider may do another test to confirm your pregnancy.
Most pregnancy tests simply measure whether or not you have hCG in your sample. But certain pregnancy tests also measure how much hCG you have. These tests are called quantitative hCG tests, and they're usually done on blood samples.
Your provider may also order a quantitative hCG blood test to help diagnose or monitor health conditions that aren't related to pregnancy. These include ovarian and testicular cancer along with other conditions that can increase hCG levels.
Search HomeAboutEducationResearchPatient CareNews HomeAboutWelcome from the DeanAbout Dean PerlmutterMission & VisionDiversity, Equity & InclusionActions & ProgressDiversity & Inclusion CommitmentFactsThe Medical CampusCampus Construction & GrowthFacilities & ServicesFaculty RecognitionHistoryAbout St. LouisEducationAreas of StudyFinancial SupportTraditionsMD White Coat CeremonyMatch DayCommencementResearchTraining ProgramsTradition of InnovationBJC InvestigatorsNobel Prize WinnersPatient CareHospital PartnersPatient StoriesClinical TrialsNewsMedia ContactsShow Me the Science PodcastAnnouncements Prospective Students
Current Students
Faculty
Staff
Alumni & Friends
Administrators
Researchers
Job Seekers
DirectoriesA to Z IndexDepartments & ProgramsAdministrative Offices & ServicesMaps & DirectionsStreet & Pedestrian ClosuresCalendarContactGivingGiving InquiryPoliciesLinks to Third-Party WebsitesWebsite Privacy Policy Visit the News HubNews ReleaseFlaw in many home pregnancy tests can return false negative resultsTest results later in pregnancy may be misleading 2ff7e9595c
Comments