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In-Home Pregnancy Tests: Your Questions Answered

How Pregnancy Tests Work

Whether it is a blood or urine test, all pregnancy tests, including in-home pregnancy kits, work the same way—by testing for the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). hCG is a hormone produced in the placenta after egg fertilization. Its concentration doubles every 2-3 days, peaking around the 8th week of pregnancy.

How Soon You Can Take the Test

Many tests can start to detect pregnancies as early as 10-15 days after conception or 1 day after a missed menstrual period. But since the level of hCG continues to rise, the test becomes more sensitive over time. So on the first day after a missed period, the urine pregnancy test may only detect some pregnancies, but 1 week later it would likely detect most pregnancies. If you tested and the result was negative, and you still have not started your period, wait a few days and test again.

How to Use an In-Home Pregnancy Test

It is important that you read the directions. Not all in-home pregnancy kits are used in the same way. With some kits, you will urinate in a cup and then use a dropper to place a small sample of your urine on the test area. Other kits require you to urinate directly on the test stick. The results are generally ready in under 5 minutes.

Test Accuracy

In-home pregnancy tests are very accurate if used appropriately 1 week or more after your missed period. However, the results are much less accurate if the test is done incorrectly, if the instructions are not followed, or you use the test too early.

It is important that you follow the directions and understand how to interpret the results. Manufacturers state that in-home pregnancy tests can be used as soon as 1 day after a missed period, but understand that the tests are much more accurate if you wait a week after a missed period.

When an error does occur, more often than not, it is a false-negative—meaning the test says you are not pregnant when you are. If the test result is negative but you are experiencing early signs of pregnancy, it is best to see your healthcare provider. The earlier that you begin prenatal care, the better it is for both you and your baby.

If your home pregnancy test is positive for a pregnancy, it is very likely to be correct. It is extremely rare that a test would give you a positive result if you were not really pregnant.

Other Possible Causes of a Missed Period

The most common cause of a missed period is pregnancy. Some other causes of missed periods include but are not limited to:

RESOURCES

American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
http://www.acog.org

Office on Women's Health
http://www.womenshealth.gov

CANADIAN RESOURCES:

The Canadian Women's Health Network
http://www.cwhn.ca

The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada
http://sogc.org

REFERENCES:

Pregnancy testing. Planned Parenthood website. Available at: https://www.plannedparenthood.org/teens/going-to-the-doctor/pregnancy-testing. Accessed November 16, 2017.

Pregnancy tests. Women's Health—US Department of Health and Human Services website. Available at: http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/pregnancy-test.html. Updated February 6, 2017. Accessed November 16, 2017.

Taking a pregnancy test. American Pregnancy Association website. Available at: http://americanpregnancy.org/getting-pregnant/taking-a-pregnancy-test. Updated March 14, 2017. Accessed November 16, 2017.

Urine pregnancy test. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T907272/Urine-pregnancy-test. Updated July 7, 2017. Accessed November 16, 2017.

Last reviewed November 2017 by EBSCO Medical Review Board Michael Woods, MD, FAAP