Pregnancy Tests
When it comes to determining if you are prenant, you have several options:
- Go to a local drug store and buy an over-the-counter (OTC) pregnancy test.
- Call a crisis pregnancy center, many of which will provide a free pregnancy test and offer counseling in case you are pregnant.
- Go to your doctor, a health clinic or hospital.
Home Pregnancy Tests
Home pregnancy kits work by testing for the hormone called human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG). hCG is secreted by the fertilized egg when it implants in the lining of the uterus.
Home pregnancy tests are more effective if you have already missed your period, but medical advances are making it possible for women to learn sooner than ever. However false negatives are common when tests are taken this early, which means you could receive a negative indication and actually be pregnant.
Home pregnancy tests are a confidential and discrete way for you to test and see if you might be pregnant, requiring only a small amount of urine. You can buy a test at almost any drug store and you do not need a prescription to purchase a test.
The instructions are inside the box and are simple to follow. Either way, results are produced almost instantly.
How is a home pregnancy test done?
There are many types of home pregnancy tests, or HPTs, that can be bought over-the-counter at drug or discount stores. Some involve collecting your urine in a cup and dipping a stick into the urine, or putting some of the urine into a special container with an eyedropper.
Others are done by placing a stick into your urine stream.
Tests vary in how long you have to wait for the stick or container to turn a certain color or have a symbol on it (like a plus or a minus). All tests come with written instructions. Most tests also have toll-free phone numbers to call if you have any questions about how to do the test or read the results.
How accurate are home pregnancy tests?
Home pregnancy tests (HPTs) are very accurate. Most brands of HPTs say they are 97 to 99 percent accurate, but this can vary with actual use. Each brand varies in how sensitive it is in picking up the pregnancy hormone hCG.
If a test is not done correctly, it will be less accurate. And, always check the package to make sure it is not past its expiration date - if it is, it will not be accurate. Most brands of HPTs tell users to do the test again in a few days, no matter the results.
If you use an HPT too early in your pregnancy, you may not have enough of the pregnancy hormone hCG in your urine to have a positive test result.
Most HPTs will be accurate if you test yourself around the time your period is due (about 2 weeks after you ovulate, or release an egg from your ovary).
You can get a negative test result if you are not pregnant or if you ovulated later than you thought you did.
You may also have problems with the pregnancy, which affects the amount of hCG you have in your urine. If your HPT is negative, test yourself again within a few days to 1 week. If you keep getting a negative result and think you are pregnant, talk with a health care provider right away.
Can anything interfere with home pregnancy test results?
Most medications, both over-the-counter and prescription drugs, including birth control pills and antibiotics, should not affect the results of a home pregnancy test.
Prescription drugs such as Profasi, Pregnyl or Novare that contain the pregnancy hormone hCG can give a false positive test result (where the test says you are pregnant when you actually are not).
Drugs that have hCG in them can be used for treating infertility (not being able to get pregnant). Alcohol and illegal drugs do not affect HPT results.
Blood Tests
When a woman has a positive result on a home pregnancy test, she needs to see a health care provider as soon as possible. The health care provider can then quickly and easily confirm the results of the home pregnancy test.
There are two types of blood tests you can receive from a health care provider. A quantitative blood test (the beta hCG test) measures the exact amount of the "pregnancy hormone," or, hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin), in the blood. This means it cane pick up even the smallest amount of hcG, making it a very accurate test.
A qualitative hCG blood test gives a simple yes or no answer to whether you are pregnant. This test is more like a urine test in terms of its accuracy.
Blood tests can pick up hCG earlier in a pregnancy than urine tests can. Blood tests can tell if you are pregnant about 6 to 8 days after you ovulate (or release an egg from an ovary). Urine tests can determine pregnancy about two weeks after ovulation.
Some more sensitive urine tests can tell if you are pregnant as early as six days after you conceive, or one day after you miss a menstrual period.
