After the test shows the cherished two strips, the woman involuntarily arises a question, but when do you need to go to the doctor, register and get tested. Immediately after the test, this is definitely not worth doing - in order to confirm the presence of pregnancy, the doctor needs special signs, and the striped test cannot convince him.
What is important for a doctor?
Let's say you are absolutely sure of pregnancy, there is also nausea, tastes and smells changed, and to top it off, the test showed a positive result. The test can be trusted. It determines the presence of the hCG hormone in the urine, which begins to be produced about a week after conception by the chorionic villi, with which the embryo is attached to the uterine wall. Thus, a positive test is the presence of hCG and you can be congratulated.
But is it time to go to the doctor? No. Neither a standard gynecological examination nor an ultrasound scan will show anything in the first days of a delay in menstruation.
The uterus is not enlarged, the cervix is not changed, and your baby at such a time has such tiny dimensions that even the most modern sensitive ultrasound scanner cannot detect it in the cavity of the reproductive female organ. Therefore, with your joy, do not rush to share with the doctors yet.
It is important for a gynecologist to get reliable signs of pregnancy in order to put you on dispensary registration, issue an exchange card and start observing the future mother in the new status. Neither the striped test, nor your subjective sensations (nausea, hurts, pricks, pulls), nor even a delay in menstruation are not considered reliable obstetric signs.
The test may be erroneous, vomiting may occur in case of poisoning, and menstruation may be absent in case of hormonal disorders or any other ailment of the reproductive system organs.
For a gynecologist, two things are important:
- availability of ultrasound confirmation;
- the presence of objective obstetric signs.
Both will be fixed, but in due time.
Correct examination dates
For the first time, the fertilized egg, when it is correctly located inside the uterus, begins to be determined when undergoing an ultrasound scan only from the 5th week of pregnancy. This refers to the fifth obstetric week, which corresponds to 3 weeks after the intended conception. Do you remember the start date of your last period? Count exactly five weeks from it, and make an appointment with an ultrasound specialist.
The examination can establish not only whether you are pregnant, but also whether your pregnancy is normal, whether it is ectopic, frozen.
You need to go to the gynecologist even later, since physiological changes that indicate the onset of an "interesting" situation take time.
The visit to the doctor's office should be postponed for up to 2-3 weeks after the start of the delay of the next menstruation.
In the office, you will have a routine gynecological examination on a chair. If you are pregnant, then within a couple of weeks after the start of the delay, the doctor may determine:
- a small increase in the size of the uterus and a change in its shape;
- moderate swelling of the labia and a change in their color to bluish due to increased blood supply.
The changes, which the doctor will eventually notice, begin immediately after implantation, but they become noticeable gradually. What signs are we talking about? First of all, the appearance of the outer labia is assessed, then the cervix is examined using a gynecological mirror. If there is a pregnancy, then it is also slightly edematous, and its center is displaced.
A two-handed examination of the uterus displays a rather characteristic picture - the walls of the uterus are softer than in non-pregnant women. The uterus becomes more ball-like in shape, whereas in the absence of pregnancy, it has the shape of a pear.
The so-called obstetric sign of Rusin - increased mobility of the cervix when feeling - is also a sign that obstetricians trust. The softening of the isthmus occurs when exposed to progesterone. And the very softness of the neck is called the Goodell sign. After 7 obstetric weeks, a slight asymmetry of the uterus is determined - the angle in which the fetus is attached begins to protrude slightly. This is a sign of Piskacek.
If these signs appear, the doctor recognizes the fact of pregnancy and puts you on record.
Is the inspection dangerous?
It is difficult to say where the myth about the danger of a gynecological examination at an early stage of pregnancy came from, but for some reason many women believe in it and try to postpone a visit to the doctor as long as possible. The danger is imaginary, it really does not exist. During the instrumental and two-handed examination, the doctor does not do anything that can lead to a miscarriage or other negative consequences.
But what about pink, bloody, or other abnormal discharge after examination, you ask? It's just that the vaginal mucosa with the onset of pregnancy under the influence of progesterone becomes looser and better supplied with blood. And therefore their appearance after examination is nothing more than microtrauma of the vessels of the mucous membrane. This condition is not dangerous, does not lead to miscarriage, does not affect the incidence of complications during pregnancy.
Do not postpone your visit to the doctor too long. Many analyzes and examinations at an early stage are of great value and informational content.
In addition, a one-time allowance is paid for early registration in Russia. To receive it from the Social Insurance Fund, which will pay for your maternity funds, you need to provide a certificate that you were registered before 12 weeks of pregnancy.
When should you go to the doctor before?
If the test has already shown a positive result, then it may be necessary to visit a doctor earlier than the above period of 2-3 weeks from the start of the delay. These situations include the occurrence of abdominal pain, the appearance of bloody, brown or other non-normal discharge from the genitals.
In this case, the fact of pregnancy will be confirmed by a blood test for hCG and ultrasound diagnostic data.
Next, a video on what to do when the pregnancy test showed two strips.
