Pregnancy Test Sherrills Ford, NC
Home Pregnancy Tests
The home pregnancy test has become the go-to tool for women who think they may be pregnant. These tests work by measuring the levels of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a hormone that is produced by the placenta during pregnancy.
Accuracy
Most tests claim 99% accuracy in clinical studies. But how accurate are they?
Pregnancy tests vary in their sensitivity to the amount of hCG needed to trigger a positive test result. In early pregnancy, the concentration of hCG in a woman’s urine can double every two or three days! For a 95% accurate result on the day of missed menses, a test must be sensitive to 12.5 mIU/mL. According to one study, only 16% of tests were accurate one or two days after a missed period. 1 Yet, highly sensitive tests are often more prone to false positives. Typically, it is better to wait one week after missing a period to take a home pregnancy test, at which time a sensitivity of 100 mlU/mL should be sufficient.
Each pregnancy test will come with specific instructions for how it is to be used and how and when the results are to be interpreted. Test types vary from cassettes and strips that display colored lines to tests with digital read-outs. A recent study showed that women misread cassette and strip tests 30 to 40% of the time. 2 Tests with digital displays are much easier to read and use but are usually a bit more expensive.
Pregnancy Confirmation Sherrills Ford, NC
It is best to get confirmation of pregnancy from a medical professional. A home pregnancy test can only indicate hormone levels, not confirm that you are pregnant or that you have a pregnancy that will develop. An ultrasound exam is the best and fastest method to confirm a viable pregnancy.
Heartbeats Women’s Center can provide free appointments for Pregnancy tests and confirm your pregnancy via ultrasound.
1 Cole LA, Khanlian SA, Sutton JM, Davies S, Rayburn WF (2004). Accuracy of home pregnancy tests at the time of missed menses. AJOG, 190(1):100-5.
2 Pike J, Godbert S, Johnson S (2013). Comparison of volunteers’ experience of using, and accuracy of reading, different types of home pregnancy test formats. Exp Opin Med Diagn, 7(5):435-41.
Pregnancy Test 28673
Sherrills Ford is an unincorporated community and former census-designated place (CDP) in Catawba County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 941 at the 2000 census. For the 2010 census it was included within the Lake Norman of Catawba CDP. It is part of the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area.