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Are Pregnancy Tests Ever Wrong?
Author: Stef Daniel
You purchased the most expensive test at the drug store. It included two tests inside the box, just so you could be doubly sure that the answers are correct. And now you are ready to take it. That is one of the most exhilarating and frightening moments any woman will ever live through. Waiting for the test can seem like hours; although it only takes seconds to see the colors run through the windows. Then, you get your answer. The next thing is to wonder, could it be wrong? After all, you feel different and somehow pregnant, but the test says negative. Or – how can you really be pregnant when you feel nothing at all?
Pregnancy tests have immensely improved over the years. They work by measuring the amount of HCG, which is a pregnancy luteinizing hormone, in your urine. You should use your first morning urine because it will have the strongest concentration of HCG, which means even if you are only days pregnant – it should register. Most over the counter tests today that are used to confirm pregnancy early measure around 5mcg of HCG, which is extremely scarce. Other, cheaper versions will measure 10mcg of HCG. Basically, your body starts producing HCG the minute you conceive and will double the amount of HCG daily. So if today your levels were at 20, tomorrow they will be at 40, and the day after that they will be at 80. This is why pregnancy tests normally tell you to wait a day or two before retesting. With each passing day, your levels increase dramatically.
One of the problems with them is that many women test so early nowadays, up to 7 days before a missed period, that there often isn’t enough HCG in your system for it to be completely accurate. Additionally, your body may not have properly implanted yet – a critical step in pregnancy, giving you a false positive if implantation is unsuccessful. And had you not taken a test, your menstrual cycle would have started normally and you would have never been the wiser to the pregnancy. By the same token, you may take a test too early when your pregnancy hormones are just too low to detect through a urine test.
Another thing that can make pregnancy tests inaccurate is a tubal pregnancy. You may have minor amounts of HCG in your system, but the pregnancy is in your fallopian tubes rather than in your uterus.
The pinker (or bluer) the line on your test, the higher concentration of HCG you have in your system. If you take a test and it is light or faint, chances are taking the same test the next day – the line will be darker. If your line never turns darker or more defined, you should get another test. If it is the same on the new test – you might want to call your doctor for a blood test.
Doctors will normally do blood work to decide pregnancy for sure. They may have you come in for two blood draws to ensure that the HCG is doubling properly, and will suspect a problem if it isn’t. Blood tests for pregnancy are by far the most accurate method of confirming pregnancy.
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