Are daytime pregnancy tests accurate?

If you want to have a child or are worried about an unexpected pregnancy, a simpler method is to use a pregnancy test strip. Although early pregnancy test strips have high accuracy, they can also be affected by various factors and affect the results, especially the choice of time. There is a concern that choosing a bad time will affect the accuracy. So, are daytime pregnancy tests accurate? Let’s take a look below.

The working principle of self-testing pregnancy using early pregnancy test strips is to detect the hCG value, that is, the value of human chorionic gonadotropin. This hormone is produced by the placenta and begins to be secreted when a fertilized egg implants. After secretion, it first appears in the blood and then appears in the urine through the circulatory system. However, due to the small amount, it is difficult to test it at the beginning. It only becomes increasingly obvious after 1-2.5 weeks of pregnancy.

1. It usually takes about 7 days for the fertilized egg to implant. That is to say, pregnancy can be detected on the earliest day of pregnancy (equivalent to 7 days after intercourse), but the accuracy is not high.

2. It is generally recommended to test the early pregnancy test strip 14 days after intercourse or one week after menstruation is delayed, and the result will be more accurate. If the self-test result is negative and menstruation still has not occurred after one week, you should do the self-test again.

3. Morning urine testing is more accurate for women who have just become pregnant. But for women who have been pregnant for some time, urine from any time of the day can be used for testing.

When is the earliest time to use a pregnancy test?

When is the earliest time to use an early pregnancy test? Generally speaking, women can use early pregnancy test strips ten days after ovulation. In addition, early pregnancy can be diagnosed by checking blood HCG 7-10 days after sexual intercourse. This is currently the earliest and most accurate method of examination.

Although early pregnancy test strips are said to have a 99% accuracy rate, you must not overly trust your self-test results. According to expert statistics, the correct testing rate of early pregnancy test strips varies greatly, ranging from 50% to 98%. Why is there such a big difference? Gynecologists point out that when women do self-tests for pregnancy at home without any external guidance, the test results are generally only 50% to 75% accurate. If this test is done in a laboratory in the presence of a doctor, who can ensure that the test strips are working properly and the woman can use the test strips correctly according to the instructions, the test accuracy may be close to 100%. Therefore, for the sake of accuracy, it is recommended that women go to the hospital for relevant examinations in time.