It so happens that a woman feels pregnant, all the signs and symptoms of "interesting position" are present, and the test stubbornly shows a negative result. Why tests are negative when pregnancy occurs, this article will tell.
Where is the second strip?
You should know that no matter what test you use, such devices work in a completely identical way - if an increase in the level of chorionic gonadotropic hormone is found in urine, then the second strip is indicated, if not, there is only one strip. Chorionic gonadotropin molecules are stained with a special chemical reagent applied to the test working area of the test system.
It should be noted that this substance begins to be produced and accumulates not immediately after conception, but only after the embryo is implanted into the endometrial layer of the uterus. This can happen at the earliest - on the 5th day after ovulation, at the latest - on the 9-10th day after it. The villi of the outer layer (chorion) begin to produce a specific hormone so that the corpus luteum continues to produce progesterone - an important hormone for the continuation of pregnancy.
HCG builds up gradually, doubling every 48 hours. But you need to count not from ovulation, as many think, but only from implantation. And its terms are purely individual. If a woman was nervous, suffered stress, if she had late ovulation, then the attachment of the baby will be late, and even after the start of the delay, there is a possibility of getting a negative test given the fact that there is a pregnancy.
The tests have different sensitivity thresholds. There are systems that trap less hCG. On the packaging, a threshold of 5-10 or 15 mIU / ml is usually indicated - these are ultrasensitive tests. There are systems with high sensitivity - 20 mIU / ml, and there are systems with medium sensitivity - from 25 to 30 units per milliliter. But the manufacturers of all systems recommend doing the examination no earlier than the start of the delay, so that the desired substance has time to accumulate more in the urine.
If the test is negative before or after the delay, this does not always mean that there is no pregnancy as such. A false negative test is quite common. Both late ovulation and implantation are far from the only reasons that can be in this situation.
Subtleties of diagnosis
Since we are still talking about situations when pregnancy is diagnosed, it is understood that the fact of "interesting situation" is confirmed by more accurate methods. Do not rely on symptoms and signs. The human psyche is designed in such a way that it can wishful thinking. It works like this: a woman focuses on a completely harmless sensation that is also characteristic of premenstrual syndrome, for example, pain in the mammary glands or increased appetite.
The brain accepts concentration as a signal for action and intensifies the symptom many times over. This convinces the woman - she is definitely pregnant. This usually affects women who have been planning a pregnancy for a long time and unsuccessfully.
Important! The method for determining hCG in the blood should be considered accurate. Blood from a vein can be donated for analysis already at 10 DPO or a little later. And if he shows an increase in the level of the hormone, we can assume that pregnancy has been diagnosed.
Causes
It is worth considering what are the reasons why, after an affirmative blood test result, the test may continue to show one strip. First of all, you need to understand that the tests do not have 100% reliability, and do not even “reach” 99%, declared by the manufacturer for advertising purposes on the packaging. An honest chance of getting an erroneous result is about 5%, and this cannot be ignored. And also do not discount the likelihood that ovulation occurred later. In this case and implantation was later than expected.
The hormone primarily grows in the blood plasma, which can be determined by laboratory diagnostics, and in the urine, the concentration of the hormone increases much later, therefore, tests after a positive blood test may remain negative. But it won't always be that way. Gradually, the concentration of hCG in urine will also become higher, which is easy to check by simply repeating the test after 2-4 days.
Sometimes women get strange results - a negative strip after a positive test, or such a result after a positive blood test. What does this mean? About two possible complications of pregnancy - about a frozen or ectopic pregnancy... In the first case, the embryo after implantation for some reason stops developing and dies, the level of hCG in this case begins to decrease, as evidenced by a negative result after a positive one. In the second case, the hCG level rises very slowly, unevenly, and the test remains either negative for a long time or becomes weakly positive. The second stripe, which is clearly inferior in brightness and clarity to the first, is in no hurry to become brighter.
Important! In these cases, it is imperative to visit a doctor, since these complications need to be identified as early as possible.
Another reason a test may remain negative during pregnancy is errors during the test. In the early stages, it is very important to follow all the rules of the instruction, not to neglect them, in order to determine the pregnancy as accurately as possible.
What to do?
If you suspect that you are pregnant, but the test does not show this, be sure to do a blood test for hCG. This test is taken on an empty stomach in the morning at any clinic. The cost of the examination is low - from 300 to 600 rubles. Results can be obtained on the same day or the next - it depends on the workload of a particular laboratory. If the blood test confirms pregnancy, then you don't have to worry - the test will definitely become striped, it will just happen a little later. Wait up to a 5-7 day delay and retest if important to you.
A week after the start of the delay, you can visit the ultrasound diagnostic room and determine the presence of pregnancy, as well as establish uterine or not. By this time, the baby's heartbeat is already determined, because a tiny heart in the embryo is one of the first to form. 2-3 weeks after the start of the delay, you can visit the gynecologist at the antenatal clinic. By this time, objective obstetric signs of pregnancy have already been determined during a standard gynecological examination. If the doctor has any doubts, he will definitely prescribe additional examinations.
It is especially difficult to sort out situations where a woman suspects that she is pregnant with her period. Since their absence is considered the norm and an indirect sign of pregnancy, their presence, of course, can indicate either the absence of pregnancy, or the threat of termination of pregnancy, then the bleeding of a pregnant woman is called menstrual.
In this case, you should not rely on tests either. It is best to do a blood test and visit a gynecologist if the test is positive.
Reviews
According to the reviews that women leave on thematic forums on the Internet, negative tests after a delay are not at all uncommon. Some argue that tests of different brands remained negative for a week or even two weeks after the start of the delay. This usually happens with a low level of hCG and progesterone, while the pregnancy is at risk of termination. But sooner or later, the test strips still turn positive.
And also women indicate that more likely to get a negative test using electronic and expensive inkjet testsbecause they do not show weakly positive results - either "yes" or "no". And the intermediate results associated with a small amount of hCG go unnoticed by a woman. According to reviews, even the most inexpensive strips can be much more accurate in this regard than expensive digital devices.
What is more accurate? Blood tests, of course. If you get positive results, you can be sure that by and large there is no need after that to do tests that can show different results and mislead a woman.
Home test systems are error-prone. It is believed that a negative test does not mean that pregnancy is impossible. You just need to be patient and wait a bit.
