How long is the shelf life of a pregnancy test stick?

A pregnancy test stick is a tool for detecting whether a woman is pregnant. The main principle is to detect whether the woman's urine contains a substance called HGG, which is a hormone that is only secreted when a woman is pregnant. However, it is usually not ruled out that sometimes unstable hormone secretion may cause an increase in HGG. So how long is the shelf life of a pregnancy test stick? The following is the relevant content found by the editor.

A pregnancy test pen is also called a pregnancy test stick. A pregnancy test pen is also commonly known as a pregnancy test piece or pregnancy test reagent. Its shelf life is 36 months. The pregnancy test stick can only be stored in a dry and cool place between 2 and 30 degrees Celsius and must not be frozen.

1. The time of testing. HCG usually appears in the urine a few days after the fertilized egg implants, and it must reach a certain amount to be detected. Therefore, for women with normal menstruation, HCG can only be detected in the urine after the menstruation is delayed. Women with long menstrual cycles or abnormal ovulation can only be detected after 40-44 days of amenorrhea.

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2. Urine dilution. Drinking too much water can dilute your urine and cause a false-negative result.

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3. Performing the test in the morning or evening may have a certain impact on the results. The highest HCG value is generally found in morning urine, so many instructions recommend testing in the morning, but this is not absolute.

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4. When testing, pay attention to the length of the test paper immersed in urine. Sometimes the length of urine that covers the test strip is too long, making the test result difficult to interpret.

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5. Do not use the test results to determine whether you are pregnant if you have had a recent pregnancy. Because HCG can remain positive for a long period of time after termination of pregnancy (after delivery, spontaneous abortion and artificial abortion).

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6. Some diseases and drugs may cause false positive results. Some tumor cells, such as hydatidiform mole, choriocarcinoma, bronchial carcinoma and renal cancer, can also secrete HCG.

The above is the shelf life of the pregnancy test stick and some precautions when using the pregnancy test stick. Usually, if the pregnancy test stick is not expired, you should also pay attention to its accuracy. The best way is to go to the hospital for an ultrasound examination to ensure whether you are pregnant and avoid unnecessary trouble.