Do you feel like you're pregnant? To be sure, just go to the pharmacy or supermarket to buy a test DIY pregnancy. The advantage of this type of test compared to those of analysis laboratories is evident: you can do it comfortably at home and within a few minutes you will remove all doubts.
In this article
- How the pregnancy test works
- How to do the pregnancy test
- When to take a pregnancy test
- Early pregnancy tests
- How much does a do-it-yourself pregnancy test cost
- Positive pregnancy test
- Negative pregnancy test
- How reliable are DIY pregnancy tests
- Blood pregnancy test: when it makes sense to do it
How the pregnancy test works
All pregnancy tests work on the same principle: they establish whether or not beta-hCG is present in the blood or urine, a fraction of chorionic gonadotropin, the so-called pregnancy hormone. It is a hormone that is produced by the first sketch of the placenta already starting from the implantation in the uterus of the embryo, which takes place approximately 6-7 days after fertilization and is very important for the smooth progression of the first weeks of pregnancy. .
As soon as its production begins, the hormone first passes into the blood - where it can be detected as early as 7-10 days after conception - and after a few more days it is disposed of with the urine. The classic do-it-yourself pregnancy test sticks available in pharmacies or supermarkets detect the presence of beta-hCG in the urine usually from the first day of delay in menstruation (12-14 days after fertilization), or in some cases even from two - four days before.
Testing for beta-hCG in the blood is usually done in testing laboratories (a blood sample is required), but a DIY test, to be done at home, has recently been put on the market. analysis of a small drop of blood taken from a finger.
6 PHOTOSPositive pregnancy test photos
go to the galleryIs the pregnancy test positive? When? What if the line is light? It may happen that the reading is not as simple as one would expect. On the display they should ...
How to do a urine pregnancy test
The operation of DIY pregnancy tests on urine is very simple: just place the appropriate strip under the urine stream for a few seconds, or dip it into the urine collected in a clean container and the result will arrive after a few minutes. Read the results it's very simple: the package insert that accompanies the kit clearly explains how to do it.
In traditional tests there is a window with a single line: in case of pregnancy the lines become two, while if you are not pregnant there is only one line left. In digital tests, writings may appear in place of lines
- you're pregnant
- or you are not pregnant
or smiley faces:
- smiling when pregnant,
- sad otherwise.
If the second line of the test is faded
Sometimes it can happen that the second dash of a DIY pregnancy test on the urine is lighter than the other, not very visible or faded. In this case, the result must still be interpreted as positive, but for safety, the test can be repeated a few days later. At that point, the second line should also be more pronounced. Alternatively, if you really want a response within the day, you can perform a blood test in an analysis laboratory, with measurement of the amount of Beta-hCG.
When to take a pregnancy test
Responds, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Pavia and gynecologist at the Pliclinico San Matteo in Pavia: "The test must be done when the menstrual cycle is late compared to its canonical 'schedule', or particular symptoms are felt, how:
- feeling excessively fatigued during the day;
- falling asleep in the evening after dinner;
- feeling nauseous or uncomfortable with certain smells and tastes;
- experience excessive tension in the breasts or menstrual-like pains "
"Do-it-yourself tests from the supermarket or pharmacy are fine" Nappi points out, "but my advice is always to wait at least for first day of delay in menstruation, to avoid disappointments and exaggerated anxieties. We remind you that for the project of pregnancy the order word should always be no stress".
In case of a positive result, some latest generation tests also suggest how long you may have been pregnant.
Pregnancy test, when to do it? Listen to the answer from the podcast.
"If possible, better test the first urine of the morning"declares Nappi." Even if those currently on the market are valid and sensitive and the risk of false positives (ie the test says that the woman is pregnant but it is not true) and false negatives (ie the woman is pregnant but the test he says no) it's very rare, it's always good to do things right ".
This is unless there is a valid reason to take the test in the middle of the afternoon or in the middle of the night: "For example an annoying disturbance that alarms you. Then it's okay at any time, and if the test is negative you can. repeat the next day in the morning ".
Read also: When to take the pregnancy testEarly pregnancy tests
Some tests are able to detect minimal amounts of hCG hormone and can therefore also be used 2-4 days earlier than the day expected for the arrival of menstruation, about 12 days after sexual intercourse considered to be at risk. However, many experts believe that those indicated starting from the first day of delay in the menstrual cycle are more reliable.
There are also tests that claim to identify a pregnancy up to a week before what should be the date of the new menstruation (as long as you have regular cycles of 28 days): they are always do-it-yourself home tests, but to be performed on blood. With a kind of pin a small prick is made on a fingertip, and squeezed a little to let out a drop of blood. At this point, the test stick is brought close to the drop of blood, to load it into a special channel which must be completely full. You put the test on the floor, wait 10 minutes and that's it: if only one line appears it means that you are not pregnant, if two appear that you are.
But be careful: even if there may be situations in which it is useful and important to know as soon as possible if there is a pregnancy in progress (for example if the woman is carrying out a work at risk or assume drugs not allowed in pregnancy), the use of very early tests can increase a woman's anxiety. As she pointed out, there is the risk of deluding herself at all, because she is convinced that she is pregnant and instead, more or less punctual, the menstruation arrives. Or to convince yourself that something is wrong, if after this very early test, menstruation arrives. "The problem is that very often it happens, in nature, that the pregnancy starts but stops almost immediately, even before the woman has the opportunity to realize that it was there. We talk about biochemical pregnancy and it is an absolutely physiological and common phenomenon ".
Read also: The first super-early pregnancy test arrives, to be done on blood at homeDo it yourself pregnancy test, the cost
The cost of a home pregnancy test ranges from 5-7 to 10-20 euros.
Positive pregnancy test
The pregnancy test is positive: congratulations, you are pregnant! "The first thing to do at this point, if you're not already doing it, is to make sure you're taking one folic acid tablet a day," she says. "Also, be careful to wash fruit and vegetables well and avoid raw cured meats and undercooked meats: you may be sensitive to toxoplasmosis. Finally, of course, it is time to notify your trusted gynecologist or midwife and to arrange the first visit during pregnancy. ".
Read also: Positive pregnancy test: 10 things to do right awayNegative pregnancy test
There are two reasons why you may have gotten a negative test result: because you are not actually pregnant or because you did it too early and the test was unable to detect too low levels of the hCG hormone. If you still have the doubt that you might be pregnant, you can repeat the test a few days later: even a week or two later, if you have very irregular menstrual cycles. If the test continues to be negative and your period just doesn't come, contact your gynecologist.
DIY pregnancy tests, how reliable they are
Home pregnancy tests have a reliability of around 98-99%, therefore in the great majority of cases they give a certain and reliable result. For this to happen, however, they must be done correctly and carefully following the manufacturer's instructions.
False positives
It can happen - very rarely - that the test says you are pregnant even if it is not. This could occur due to the interference of some medications (particularly fertility drugs containing hCG) or in the presence of ovarian cancer.
False negatives
Always rare, but a little more frequent, are the so-called false negatives: in this case the test gives a negative result, but in reality the pregnancy is there. A false negative result can occur if the test was performed too early, when the hCG levels in the urine were still too low to be detected. Or if the test was read too quickly or, again, if it was performed on excessively diluted urine. That is why it is very important to carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions which also indicate how long to wait before reading the result, and to avoid drinking too much before taking the test.
As already mentioned, if the test is negative but you still suspect that you are pregnant and your periods continue to not arrive, the best thing to do is to repeat it after a few days (better a week or even two, to be safe, if your periods are irregular) .
Read also: Pregnancy test: false positives and false negativesBlood pregnancy test: when it makes sense to do it
In the past, the measurement of beta-hCG in the blood by laboratory analysis was used for get an idea of the progress of pregnancy in the first few weeks. If all goes well, in fact, the concentration in the blood of this hormone increases a lot in the first trimester and, especially in the first weeks, it tends to do so very regularly, doubling roughly every 2-3 days.
Today, however, it is believed that it no longer makes much sense to propose this dosage of routine (although some doctors still recommend it), because to know if you are pregnant you just need a urine test, while to understand how things are going, an ultrasound is more useful, performed starting two weeks after the positive test
The examination, however, remains useful in some circumstances and that is when when the first ultrasound - perhaps performed very early because there has been blood loss - is doubtful, or because you do not see anything, or because what you see does not correspond to the expected. For example, you see an ovarian chamber but you don't see the embryo. This can occur in three cases:
- when the pregnancy occurs, but is further behind than expected;
- when there was a pregnancy, but there was an abortion;
- when the pregnancy is extrauterine, that is localized outside the uterus.
In these circumstances it is recommended a series of two / three successive doses of betahCG at a distance of a couple of days from each other, because their trend can help to understand what is happening. If they double the pregnancy proceeds, if they decrease unfortunately it has stopped and if they increase without doubling it is possible that it is an ectopic pregnancy.
50 PHOTOS50 semi serious reasons why having a baby is worth it
go to the galleryin a good mood even if it's raining outside and everything seems to go wrong. But beyond that there is more ... already from pregnancy. Here are 50 reasons, between the serious and the facetious, ...
Questions and answers
How is a pregnancy test done?
Home pregnancy tests are very simple to perform: you have to put the appropriate strip for a few seconds under the stream of urine, or immerse the stick in a clean container, where you will have collected the urine.
When can you take a pregnancy test?
The pregnancy test is a simple and effective tool to find out if you are pregnant. The ideal is to do it starting from the first day of delayed menstruation, with the first urine in the morning.
How to read the beta-hCG test?
The concentration of beta-HCG in the blood increases very rapidly in the first weeks of pregnancy, doubling every 2-3 days. However, it is not recommended to routinely perform this dosage to date pregnancy or evaluate its progress, because the range of possible values is very wide.
TAG:
- pregnancy test
- early pregnancy test
- pharmacy
- beta-hcg
- weeks 1-13
