How many pregnancy tests should you take? How and when to take a pregnancy test to get an accurate result. Using a pregnancy test
Almost every woman at some point in her life wonders about her condition - is she pregnant or is the delay associated with any abnormalities in the functioning of the body? Pregnancy test - on what day should it be taken? For some, this question is associated with a wonderful feeling of anticipation of expected motherhood. Someone, on the contrary, expects only a negative answer.
What is conception? The female egg is fertilized. The emerging embryo is in the uterus, beginning to produce hCG hormone. The hCG hormone is human chorionic gonadotropin.
For a long time, it was possible to determine pregnancy only by visiting a gynecologist. The gestational age could already be 2-3 months. Science does not stand still, diagnostic methods have changed, and you can get an answer to this question much earlier.
How many days will it take for the test to show pregnancy using regular strips?
A modern method that allows you to find out with a fairly high probability whether a woman is pregnant or not is simple. This pregnancy test, which can be purchased at every pharmacy. But the question often arises: after how many days will the test show pregnancy, if you count from the time of PA.
How many days will it take for the test to show pregnancy using conventional strips, which almost all modern women have used in their lives? As is known, in this case it is carried out Analysis of urine. This method is good because it simple, you don’t have to go anywhere, you do the test at home.
Every woman knows that there are practically seven days to conceive a child: five before ovulation and two after it. So what day should you take a pregnancy test? Even after determining the exact date of ovulation (which is quite difficult to do), testing after a couple of days is useless. Until hCG secretion starts, it is impossible to detect pregnancy.
Test makers say women can take it a day or two before the expected delay.
- Only about 25% of women find out they are pregnant two days before their expected period.
- In one day, about 40% of women hope to become expectant mothers.
Statistics give the following figures: on average, only in two weeks (13-14 days) women will be able to see two lines on the test if conception has occurred. Those. the most likely result appears on the day of missed menstruation.
Why is this data provided here? When asked the question - on what day does the test indicate pregnancy - women cannot get an accurate answer. A positive result can only appear three weeks after ovulation. If the issue is very important to you, then on the first day of the delay, do hCG test. Then you will get 100% result.
Therefore, the question: “Pregnancy test – on what day should I take it?” remains open. If you do it at the wrong time or not in accordance with the instructions, you can get a false negative result. The woman will consider herself not pregnant, and then this issue will be resolved positively. For some this will be a moment of joy, but for others it will only bring grief.
On what day to take a pregnancy test - gynecologists still advise waiting 3 weeks after ovulation. Then you can achieve 99% of the result. Only after such a period does the hCG level reach a concentration sufficient for analysis.
Blood test: on what day does the test show pregnancy?
In addition to such a test, there is another accurate way that allows a woman to find out about her pregnancy or its absence. This is special blood analysis. Here is some background information on this pregnancy test.
- On what day does the test show pregnancy using this method? The analysis can be carried out starting from the seventh day expected conception.
- How long does it take to get a pregnancy result from a blood test? You'll have to wait for the result about a day.
- Is it possible to determine the exact stage of pregnancy through a blood test? The presence of the hormone hCG is determined and exact date pregnancy. This pregnancy test will determine both qualitative and quantitative hCG levels.
This question interests the vast majority of women after sex without contraception. Some are counting the days in the hope of the coveted two stripes, while others are waiting in horror for the result. But in any case, there is no limit to impatience, and there is still so long before the onset of menstruation! Is it possible to find out about pregnancy even before the expected day of your period?
To know when is the best time to take a pregnancy test, you should first understand how it works. Each test is coated with a chemical reagent that changes color when the hormone hits it. That is, when a reaction occurs, a second strip appears. If only one is still visible, then there is no reaction, which means the hormone has not appeared in the woman’s urine.
HCG is present in the body of a non-pregnant woman in very small doses - no more than 5 units per milliliter of blood (in urine even less). As soon as the egg is fertilized, gonadotropin begins to be produced at a very rapid pace. So, a week after pregnancy, when the future baby attaches to the walls of the uterus, its concentration reaches 10 - 15 U/ml.
The most sensitive tests can already detect the presence of pregnancy. If you wait two weeks after the expected fertilization, any test will react to hCG. Usually by this time there is already a delay. Therefore, if you do not want to wait for the onset or non-occurrence of menstruation, after about a week you can purchase a test with a sensitivity of only 10 U/ml, and a few days later - 25 U/ml. If both tests show a positive result, it’s time to see a gynecologist.
The question of when is the best time to take a pregnancy test also includes the time of day. At first, the most reliable results are obtained immediately after waking up. In the morning portion of urine, the concentration of hCG is highest, and during the day it may decrease.
The accuracy of a pregnancy test is no less important for women. Could he be wrong? As a rule, tests are reliable, but the possibility of error cannot be excluded. Thus, a false negative result is possible in the early stages, when hCG has not yet reached the required concentration. Moreover, the physiological characteristics of the body are different for everyone. If you suspect you are pregnant, you should get tested in a few days. A positive result in the absence of pregnancy can be found if there was a termination of pregnancy several months before or if the woman is taking hormonal drugs containing hCG. This may also indicate the presence of tumors.
In general, our body is our best advisor. When is the best time to take a test, early pregnancy symptoms will tell you. In addition to a delay in menstruation, there are many signs by which a woman can understand that she is about to become a mother. These include morning sickness, the appearance of unusual taste preferences, increased drowsiness, and fatigue. Colostrum may be released almost immediately. If these signs appear, you can measure your basal temperature for several days. If time moves towards the beginning of menstruation, and it remains above 37 degrees, then it makes sense to purchase a pregnancy test.
Thus, it is quite clear when is the best time to take a pregnancy test.
Pregnancy tests for home use sold in any pharmacy differ not only in cost, but also in the method of taking the test itself, and most importantly, in the level of sensitivity.
Home pregnancy tests determine the result based on the level of the hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin, produced only during pregnancy) in the urine. This hormone is produced by the chorion (the membrane of the embryo) after it is fixed in the uterine cavity. From this moment, the concentration of hCG in the woman’s urine begins to increase, and the quality and sensitivity of the test determines when you can get an accurate answer whether pregnancy has occurred.
The sensitivity of pregnancy tests is marked with numbers 10, 20, 25, 30, which corresponds to the concentration of hCG in urine in mIU/ml (international units per ml) that they are able to detect. The lower the number, the higher the sensitivity of the test and its accuracy.
Before missed period
The most sensitive and most expensive tests recognize the appearance of a baby even before the expected date of the onset of menstruation - already seven to ten days from the moment of expected conception. Read the information on the package carefully; the sensitivity of such a test should be 10 mIU/ml. As a rule, inkjet tests have the desired characteristics.
A blood test for hCG is another way to find out about early pregnancy. On the 12th day after the date of expected conception (that is, with a long cycle even before the delay), based on the results of this analysis, it will already be possible to say whether pregnancy has occurred in this cycle or not, and to accurately name the due date. The presence of hCG in the blood can be determined earlier - already on the seventh day after conception, however, the results may be inaccurate and the blood will need to be taken again a week later to confirm them.
When choosing the time to take a pregnancy test, keep in mind that the hCG blood test is best taken in the morning on an empty stomach. If you come in the afternoon, be prepared to not eat for four to six hours before your blood is drawn. It is also recommended to avoid physical activity before the procedure. If you are taking any hormonal medications, discuss this with your doctor before donating blood.
First or third day of delay
Most home tests have a sensitivity of 20–25 mIU/ml and provide accurate results from the first day of a missed period. It is useless to use such a pregnancy test when it is too early to do it - the answer will be negative, even if pregnancy has actually occurred.
Fourth to seventh day of delay
A definite answer can be obtained after a significant delay in menstruation. At this time, any test, if it is working correctly, will show an accurate result. It is worth considering that with the help of a home test you can only determine the presence or absence of pregnancy, and its exact duration can only be determined by taking a blood test for hCG.
What time to take a pregnancy test
It is better to take a home pregnancy test in the morning, when the concentration of the hCG hormone in the urine is maximum.
If it is more convenient for you to take a pregnancy test in the evening, be sure to choose the most sensitive jet test, for which the exact time of the test is not of serious importance.
Modern tests make it possible to determine pregnancy as soon as possible after “suspicious” sexual intercourse. But this cannot be done earlier than is possible in principle. And in order to correctly answer the question posed, it is necessary to understand the processes that occur after the meeting of the sperm and egg.
How does a pregnancy test work?
So, we know that after fertilization has occurred, the level of the hCG hormone in a woman’s blood begins to increase, which indicates the presence of pregnancy. Having identified this substance, the test shows us a positive result - two stripes. In fact, the test reacts to the presence of the hormone gonadotropin in the urine: when the level of hCG rises, a reagent appears on the second test strip.
HCG in the body of a pregnant woman is produced immediately after implantation of the embryo into the wall of the uterus, first in the blood, and a little later in the woman’s urine, and it is usually found in a lower concentration in the urine than in the blood. Implantation, in turn, occurs 7-10 days after ovulation. But it must be taken into account that the level of the hormone grows gradually, increasing daily until it reaches a certain level, which the test is able to record. This moment determines the time frame. That is, the test is able to “detect” the presence of the hormone gonadotropin in the urine of a pregnant woman no earlier than 11-15 days after the day of the last ovulation. The lower the sensitivity threshold of the test, the earlier it can detect pregnancy and the more expensive it costs. Tests with a sensitivity of 10 mIU/ml (as a rule, belong to this category) are able to determine an existing pregnancy several (up to five) days before the expected period. Tests with a sensitivity of 25 mIU/ml (in the form of strip strips) determine pregnancy starting from the first day of delay. But these are statistics. And there are also individual cases with early or late implantation. Therefore, a premature test can often be wrong.
When to take a pregnancy test if you have an irregular cycle?
The likelihood of a test error is especially high if a woman has an irregular menstrual cycle. A test carried out ahead of time in this case may show false negative results, because the gestational age may be too short for the reactive strip to work. A pregnancy test error is more likely the earlier the test was performed.
How to take a pregnancy test correctly?
Regardless of the regularity of the cycle and other characteristics of the female body, the reliability of the test will be higher, the more clearly the rules for its conduct are followed. Any violations of the instructions may cause false results.
It is believed that a pregnancy test in the morning shows the most reliable results, since the concentration of hCG in morning urine is the highest. But if the delay is already long, then the test can generally be carried out at any time of the day.
A prerequisite is compliance with the rules of sterility: no foreign substances should enter the test liquid, and therefore hands must first be thoroughly washed and wiped dry. Also prepare a sterile vessel for collecting material in advance.
The test strip must be immersed in a container with urine only to the level indicated on its strip, and always on the side indicated (where the reactive substance is contained).
You should not evaluate the test result earlier than the time specified in the instructions (usually 5 minutes) or much later. After a long period of time, the results of any test are no longer valid.
Especially for- Elena Kichak
From Guest
For the first pregnancy, the test showed a positive result on the first day of the delay. On the second only on the 5th, on the third I didn’t show it at all for a long time, I donated blood for hCG and found out. The children are all healthy, praise be to the Almighty
From Guest
And the test showed me two and one very weak one during the first pregnancy, after my period and it was 5 weeks)
From Guest
And I took a test at 3 weeks of pregnancy and showed a negative result, 10 days later I donated blood for hCG and in the end the period was 5 weeks)) And now I’m 8 months)))
From NastenkaYour
I took a test on the 7-10th day of the delay, I don’t remember exactly, it showed everything clearly, it was just 6 weeks from the month. and from the estimated conception 4 weeks.
From Guest
I am now 4 days pregnant, my husband and I really want a baby. I took the test 2 days in a row in the morning and it was negative, we’ll wait a little longer...maybe in 2-3 days it will show 2 cherished stripes :-)
From Guest
There is a delay of 5 days. I took a negative test, but the delay continues, I will do another test later. And the symptoms are still there
From Guest
The test showed me the correct (positive) result only at 6 weeks of pregnancy. so I don’t know who shows it on the 10th day after PA...
From Guest
It feels like everyone here is so happy about pregnancy.. But I just took the test with fear.. 10 days after the test, negative result.. I hope I didn’t lie!
From Guest
4 days before the delay it showed a weak 2nd line, after another 2 days the line was even clearer. When you are waiting for such news, tests are a good thing, my mommy is happy and my future dad is calm.
Answered our questions obstetrician-gynecologist of the gynecology department of the Doctor Plastic clinic, doctor of the highest category Tatyana Guzil.
"AiF": - What types of pregnancy tests are there?
T.G.: — In general, pregnancy tests can be divided into 2 types - those that determine the concentration of the pregnancy hormone - human chronic gonadotropin (hCG) in the blood and those that determine hCG in the urine.
The first type of tests can only be done in a laboratory, so to perform them you must contact a doctor or directly to a laboratory.
Tests of the second type are more common, as they are sold in pharmacies without a doctor's prescription, are relatively inexpensive and easy to use, and can be done at home.
These tests, in turn, are divided into “test strips”/“strip tests” (strips for dipping into a container with urine) - this is the most common and inexpensive testing method, “plate” tests (the device has plastic packaging and a special case for collecting urine), “jet” tests (devices that can be placed directly under a stream of urine) and “electronic” (digital) tests of a new generation (the principle of operation is the same as in the previous ones, only instead of changing color, the inscription “pregnant” appears) or “not pregnant.” Also, some models have additional functions: calculating the expected date of birth if the result is positive.
“AiF”: — On what principle do pregnancy tests work?
T.G.: — The principle of operation of the above pregnancy tests is based on the detection of the “pregnancy hormone” (hCG), secreted by the placenta from the moment the embryo is implanted into the uterine wall throughout pregnancy. This hormone blocks the function of the ovaries, which produces the next egg, thereby preventing a secondary pregnancy. The reliability of this test is very high - no placenta, no hCG.
Result accuracy
"AiF": - Is there a difference between a cheap test (10-80 rubles) and an expensive one (about 300 rubles)?
T.G.: — The difference is not very big. Expensive and highly sensitive inkjet and electronic tests can detect pregnancy several days before the expected start of menstruation, cheaper tests - after the first day of delay. But in any case, the reliability of the test is affected by its correct use - since even the most expensive test can make mistakes if it is carried out in violation of the requirements.
"AiF": - How much does it cost to buy pregnancy tests - one, three or five to get an accurate answer?
