Pregnancy tests: when to use, the accuracy of the result

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Issues related to the conception of a child are of concern to many girls. Someone is trying to catch the “right day” to become a mother soon, some, on the contrary, are afraid of replenishment in the family. In any case, there are situations in which conception cannot be excluded. Pregnancy tests are used to check the outcome of unprotected intercourse. What are they like? How accurate is this study? And how to use the appropriate "testers"? Answers to all this and more can be found below.

Types of pregnancy test

First of all, let's find out how in the modern world a woman can find out about her "interesting" position. It's not that hard.

Pregnancy tests are different. For example, they are divided into:

• blood test;
• urinalysis;
• ultrasound;
• examination by a gynecologist;
• express check.

In a global sense, "testers" can be divided into:

• home verification methods;
• tests in medical facilities.

Let's focus on rapid tests. This is the mostwidely used in practice. What you need to know about using fertility tests?

What are

Turning to the pharmacy for a pregnancy test, a girl may encounter certain difficulties. For example, with the choice of the type "tester".

The point is that today there are a lot of rapid tests. Among them are:

• cassette (tablet);
• jet;
• test strips;
• electronic.

Which is better to stop? The answer is not as easy as it seems. After all, each type of test has its pros and cons. Often, women buy either expensive and ultra-precise "testers" or inexpensive products to test for the success of conception. Next, we will consider the features of all of these components.

Test strip

The first and most common type of home pregnancy test is the test strip. This is an inexpensive and affordable product for everyone.

The product is represented by small rectangular pregnancy tests. They have a special mark. The girl just needs to lower the test strip into a jar of fresh urine to the indicated line. After that, it remains to wait 5-10 seconds and put the test on a dry horizontal surface. The result will appear in 10 minutes. Two stripes - there is a pregnancy. One - no conception.

This is a previous generation pregnancy test. Today you can find test strips with high sensitivity (25 mUI), but suchproducts have a number of shortcomings.

Namely:

• not always convenient to collect urine;
• collection of biomaterial should be carried out using sterile devices, otherwise errors are possible;
• if you overdo or underdo the test, a false result is possible;
• paper tests do not always withstand the concentration of hCG ("pregnancy hormone").

Tablets

Pregnancy tests in the early stages of an "interesting" position help a woman quickly find out that she will soon be a mother. You can find tablet express strips in pharmacies.

This is a more expensive and more accurate method for determining "interesting" positions. The sensitivity and quality of the "tablet" is the same as that of paper strips. Nevertheless, such a test is worth 5 times (sometimes more) higher.

The use of "tablets" is very convenient - a pipette and a container for collecting urine are included with the device. It is enough to pick up the biomaterial with a pipette and drop it into a special compartment on the test. After a couple of minutes, the result will appear (two bars or "+" - you are pregnant).

These "testers" are the second generation of pregnancy tests. They are often used in hospitals of medical institutions.

Inkjet test

On what day will the test show pregnancy? The answer directly depends on what kind of product for the verification was bought by the girl.

Jetexpress tests. During urination, the girl should place one end of the device under the stream of urine and hold it in this position for 2-5 seconds. Further, as in all the above cases, it is recommended to place the receiver on a flat horizontal surface. A few minutes - and the woman will see one or two stripes.

Such pregnancy tests are even more expensive than tablets. You can find inkjet "devices" costing about 250-350 rubles.

The advantages of such a pregnancy test are the following factors:

• no urine collection needed;
• use allowed at any time of the day;
• highly sensitive;
• easy to use.

However, even inkjet tests are sometimes wrong. Nobody is immune from this. Therefore, it is important to know when to take a pregnancy test. We will deal with this issue a little later.

Electronic device

The most expensive and modern method of checking for pregnancy at home is an electronic device. This is a test equipped with a special indicator. It says "You are pregnant" or "You are not pregnant". Such products cost at least 500 rubles (depending on the manufacturer).

The test sensitivity is 10 MIU/ml. These are the most accurate devices. They can spot an "interesting" position before the rest of the rapid tests.

The use of the device is reduced to the collection of urine and to the roombiomaterial on the receiving side of the device. The result usually appears immediately.

When to check?

Can a pregnancy test be wrong? Yes! If you carefully study the information on the boxes with express tests, you can see that the accuracy of the test result is 95-98%.

It is important to remember that problems with determining the "interesting" position often arise when the girl either does not follow the recommendations for using the studied devices, or if the test is done too early. This is due to the low level of hCG. It is with its help that all pregnancy tests are carried out.

Doctors recommend not rushing to check on the success of conception. The hCG level starts to rise a little in the first month of the "interesting" position, and then it rises faster. Therefore, it is better to postpone the check on the first day of the delay of critical days. It is this feature of the body that should prompt the idea of pregnancy.

Time of day plays a role

That is, the "interesting" position will be displayed on express strips a month after conception. This is in the general case. There are exceptions.

We'll talk about them later. A pregnancy test is done 2 weeks after ovulation. As emphasized earlier, on the first day of the delay in menstruation. All the described manipulations will have to be performed in the morning.

This is due to the fact that in the morning urine the level of hCG is higher than in the rest of the time. Or the girl may not go to the toilet for at least 8 hours. This option is bad.for he alth, so it's better not to risk it.

Exceptions to the rule

On what day does the test show pregnancy? Ideally - 15-16 days after conception. This is just during the delay of the monthly cycle. We are talking about tests with a sensitivity of 25 MIU / ml.

But there are also electronic "testers". They can be done as early as a week after conception. Moreover, such products remove the time limit for testing. If a girl bought an electronic test, she can do it in the morning, afternoon, and evening. The main thing is to use the device correctly.

False two stripes

We figured out when to take a pregnancy test. This is a pretty simple question, but there are a few rules to follow.

False result after the test is not excluded. For example, often girls see "=", but there is no pregnancy. This happens when:

• girl has dysfunctional ovarian disease;
• the body has a tumor that produces hCG.

Fortunately, this scenario is not so common. The majority of women see a false negative result. What leads to this?

Pregnancy is there, but the test does not show

A negative pregnancy test is not such a rare scenario. It turns out like this if:

• test too early;
• violated the rules for using the test;
• drank a lot of liquid;
• girl enjoys with dough withexpired.

That's it. In any case, pregnancy tests are not a universal test method. If you want to accurately determine the success of conception, you will have to visit a gynecologist, as well as go to an ultrasound room.

After getting the result

How to behave after a girl saw the cherished 2 strips on a pregnancy test?

We'll have to rule out an ectopic pregnancy. Unfortunately, this cannot be done at home. Express check at home simply indicates the successful conception of a child. Uterine pregnancy or not, only the gynecologist will tell.

That is, after issuing the result "=" you need to make an appointment with a doctor. After the examination, the woman will be told not only about the "interesting situation", but also determine the period on which the expectant mother is.

It is important to pay attention to the fact that modern electronic "testers" sometimes issue not only the result of the test, but also the term of the "interesting" position. This product is very expensive.

Weak streaks

Pregnancy test is done 2 weeks after expected ovulation. In some cases, "testers" show a second strip, but very weak, barely noticeable.

This alignment can be considered positive. That is, there is a pregnancy. However, girls are advised to re-test in a few days. Then it will be possible to find out whether the woman will really soon become a mother.

Results

We found out if a pregnancy test canmake mistakes. In addition, now it is clear how accurate this is a way to obtain information about the "interesting" position of the girl.

What to choose? The answer depends on how much money the girl is willing to spend, as well as when she plans to check. Most often, pharmacies buy test strips and inkjet devices. They are very easy to use. The main thing is to look at the sensitivity of the test before buying. This will determine how long the test will show pregnancy.