Is It Possible To Get A False Positive When You Take A Pregnancy Test Your Dr’s Office?

Yes, it is possible to get a false positive when you take the test in a doctor’s office. Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) pregnancy tests, both blood tests and home pregnancy tests determine pregnancy through the detection of the hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in a woman’s urine. Doctors recommend that you wait until you have missed a period to take a home pregnancy test. If you can not wait that long to find out and you know the day you may have conceived, then the earliest you can take a test would be 14 days from possible conception. A missed period (amenorrhea) in a woman who has always had regular periods is often the first sign of pregnancy.

Why Test At The Doctor’s Office?

Home tests are usually 97% accurate when all instructions are followed correctly and the results are read on time. Some kits come with two tests so that in case you have made a mistake, you may take the home pregnancy tests gain. It sometimes takes several days beyond the missed period before the home pregnancy test becomes positive, so you may want to repeat it. Make sure that you follow all the instructions carefully. For best results you can take the test at a doctor’s clinic so that there are no errors. Your doctor could also do a blood human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) hormone test, which is more reliable and becomes positive about 10 or so days after ovulation.

Urine or home pregnancy tests become positive shortly after missing an expected period. If you get a positive result and need confirmation, wait for 2 weeks or so from possible conception date and then ask your doctor to arrange for you to have a blood pregnancy test (serum hCG), which is more sensitive than a urine test (if you start your period within this 2 weeks, then the blood test would not be necessary since you wouldn’t be pregnant).

False Positive Pregnancy Tests And What Causes Them

A false positive pregnancy test is when the test says that you are pregnant but actually you are not. False positive pregnancy tests are rare, though there are instances and conditions where they can occur. For example, some tissues in a non-pregnant woman can produce human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) which might be detected by these home pregnancy tests.

Here are some common reasons for a false positive test.

Chemical pregnancy
A chemical pregnancy is a condition when a women tests positive for pregnancy tests but shows no other signs or symptoms of pregnancy. Research has shown that half of all conceptions do not reach pregnancy. A few of these are caused by false or chemical pregnancy.

Erratic technique
There is a possibility that while using the home pregnancy test strip you either did not dip it well or did not hold it well in your urine stream. This error in technique may give false positive results. You should not rely on any positive result that does not show up within the time limit stated in the test instructions. Since you will perform this test in a doctor’s office, chances of error are reduced.

Missed reaction time
For accuracy in home pregnancy tests it is essential that you read the test results in the stipulated reaction time. If you let the test sit for too long (after the instructions on the box tell you), the test is invalid. This may cause it to show false positive results.

Chemical interference
Drugs that have the pregnancy hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in them can cause incorrect results in home pregnancy tests. The human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in them may be responsible for the false positive pregnancy test.

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This entry was posted under About Pregnancy Tests.