Why A Pregnancy Test Result Can Be A False Alarm

People do perform more than one pregnancy test so that they can be sure about their pregnancy. But is this really necessary to do more than one test to find out the result?

Well, advertisements do claim that almost all home pregnancy tests are mostly 99 percent accurate but actually the precision varies from 54 percent to 97 percent. So there is actually a fair chance in false negative on first response.

But again these false positives which means that when the test results are positive but one is really not pregnant are pretty rare cases but the opposite; like when one is pregnant but the test results are negative happens in a frequent manner. So people cannot really trust a single home pregnancy test.

The major reasons for a false positive result is because the test is done too early and that time of pregnancy there is too little HCG or human chorionic gonadotropin present in the urine which is made by the placenta. So, it cannot be very easily detected till the fertilized eggs get attached to the uterus. And this never happens before 6 to 12 days after ovulation. So, if the pregnancy test is done too soon like just immediate after the conception, then the result might come out negative.

If the result comes out negative then one should wait at least another week before going for a re test. It is better to wait for at least 2 weeks after the sexual activity and then go for the home pregnancy test because by then the conception becomes more accurate.

What is a hook effect?

Well, this is kind of complicated but this happens when there is too much of HCG present in the urine. Here, the test is mainly done to detect the HCG level between 27 to 233 thousand parts per million. So, if there is too much HCG present in the urine then the test can also not detect it. In case of molar pregnancy it is a bit of uncommon trait. Now the question is why one should go for it? Well, if the test results are negative, but still one seems to have symptoms of pregnancy and missing of period dates then this has to be done with the help of a health care provider.

When the test results come out positive, there is a 95 percent chance that one is pregnant. But again, false results can come out if the test is not performed properly and the test pack that is used has covered its expiration date. Also it can happen if there are some HCG leftovers present in the urine due to a very early miscarriage. There can also be some HCG remnants from the infertility treatment. Medications sometimes can also lead to some false test results in pregnancy.

In order to make sense pregnancy test it is always a better idea to go for a regular urine or blood test in a pathology centre where an expert can do the test and see the results.