If your period is late and you find yourself wondering whether that night of sex when the condom broke has resulted in pregnancy, you can find out for sure with a pregnancy test. Taking a pregnancy test is a quick, easy way to determine if you’re pregnant as early as one week after your first missed period. The team of physicians at Access Health Care in Downers Grove, Illinois provides comprehensive pregnancy testing services, including the blood draw test, for patients in the greater Chicago-land area. To find out more, call or request your appointment online today.
Pregnancy Testing Q & A
You can take a urine-sensitive pregnancy test anytime after your period is late; that’s when they’re most accurate. Although you can take urine-sensitive tests just one day after your period should have arrived, you’re more likely to get accurate results when you use it seven days after your missed period. If your periods are very irregular, or if you rarely get periods at all, you’re more likely to get accurate results if you wait to take the pregnancy test three weeks after having sex. In general, the earlier you know about a pregnancy, the better: It gives you time to both consider your options and start getting the care you need to stay healthy.
Like the urine-sensitive pregnancy test, a blood draw test confirms pregnancy by measuring the levels of the pregnancy hormone HCG in your body. A blood draw pregnancy test gives a numerical count of your HCG hormone levels. In addition to confirming pregnancy, your HCG numerical count helps your doctor determine a range of possible gestation. Blood draw test results are usually ready in two to four days.
An ultrasound is a safe and painless procedure that uses high-frequency sound waves to create an image of your uterus and the fetus. The image is projected onto a monitor. Ultrasound may be used at various points during pregnancy. During the first trimester, for example, it may be performed to check that the embryo is developing inside the womb (rather than inside a fallopian tube), to confirm the number of embryos, and calculate the gestational age and the baby’s due date.
If you take a urine-sensitive pregnancy test after you miss your period and the results are positive, you are most likely pregnant. To be sure, you can always opt to wait a few days and take another test or have a blood draw. Either way, a counselor can meet with you to discuss your results as well as your options, and to help you get the care you need.