A Pregnancy Tests Strip

A guide on how to use pregnancy tests strip, when to use it, how does it work and how to read the result.

Pregnancy tests strip is use to check if a woman is pregnant.

A pregnancy tests strip is an accurate method of testing pregnancy in a woman. If not 100% reliable then it is 95% reliable.

This test can either be carry out at home or at the hospital. This can be done with the aid of urine or blood. It can be done with urine at home but blood sample must be collected by the doctor to test for the other method at the hospital. The strip works and show the result by measuring the level of an hormone called Human Chronic Gonadotropin (HCG) present in the urine and blood of a woman after her conception.

Another idea to take a test is if a woman misses her period, this sign to some extent confirms that a woman is pregnant.

Some women do not know if they are pregnant at the early stage while some do take note of their pregnancy at the early stage. Whichever case, proper care, monitor and check-up needs to be properly done at the right place (hospital) and at the right time. Life style such as dressing, eating, sleeping, outing of this pregnant woman may be changed.

Some Basic fact about Pregnancy Test

Pregnancy tests work by detecting human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG).
The test can be around 95% accurate when used properly.
Pregnancy test strips might be of different product and there might also be a slight difference on how it works, so it is advisable to read the instructions carefully before use.
Some medications (drugs or injection) can lead to wrong or inaccurate reading when doing the pregnancy test.
Detection of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) in the woman urine is what makes the pregnancy test work.

How does a pregnancy test work?

Pregnancy test is around 95% accurate at letting a woman know if she is pregnant or not.

A pregnancy test works by measuring the amount of HCG hormone in urine and blood. HCG levels increase during pregnancy.

The HCG is the popularly known as pregnancy hormone, which is produced by the cells that forms the placenta and provide nourishment to the growing embryo in the woman.

HCG is released when a fertilized egg attaches to the lining of the uterus.

A negative HCG result is a level less than 5 mIU/ml (milli-international units per milliliter).

A positive HCG for pregnancy is greater than or equal to 25 mIU/ml.

How to do a Pregnancy Test

This include testing the urine or blood.

The urine test can be done at home individually, but a medical practitioner must perform the blood test.

Urine pregnancy test at home

The first urine of the day (early morning) is advisable to be used in carrying out this pregnancy test. And the result is ready between 2-3 minutes but may vary based on the product of the strip.

Firstly, the person trying to carry out the test must have gotten the pregnancy test strip down (available).

Secondly, collect some amount of urine of the person in a small dry and clean bottle with cover.

Thirdly, dip the pregnancy test strip into the urine.

Instead of collecting the urine in a small bottle the pregnancy test strip can be applied directly when urinating.

Blood pregnancy test

The blood test is by far the best and accurate method for testing a pregnancy in woman. Therefore, the service of a medical practitioner is required.

Blood checking to verify pregnancy is either through qualitative or quantitative HCG test.

The qualitative test is use to detect the presence or absence of HCG in the blood.

While the quantitative test is used to measure the amount of HCG in the blood.

It is just that the blood test gives an accurate result but some of the demerits of the blood test that makes people prefer the urine test to it is that:

Blood pregnancy test is expensive to carry out
it is time consuming (result takes long) and
must be carried out at the lab in an hospital.

When to use a pregnancy tests strip

One of the best time of carrying out the pregnancy test (urine) is very early in the morning. And preferably with the first urine of the day.

While some product of the test string described the best method to use it.

14 days after possible conception is one of the best time of carrying out the urine test, or by waiting until you notice that your period is missing.

Consuming a lot of liquids before taking the test, can lead to a false negative, even if the woman is pregnant.

How to read of a pregnancy tests strip

Each product of testing has their own special way of giving out result, that is why reading the instruction is very important. The result may appear in any form as follows:

Change in color.
Colored line: one colored line indicates negative (no pregnancy). and two colored line indicate positive (presence of pregnancy).
The appearance of a symbol, like plus or minus, or change in a marked line.
Words like “pregnant” or “not pregnant” can appear as the answer.

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Thanks for reading.