Parents who are trying to have a child are looking forward to the moment when they will be able to check whether fertilization has taken place. The simplest but very effective way is to take a pregnancy test, which is nearly 99% reliable. However, home pregnancy tests have to be taken at a certain time, the result will certainly not be reliable when you take the test right after sex. Find out how many days you should wait to be sure that you will become parents
The first signs of pregnancy are easily mistaken for an impending menstruation, which is why many women only take a pregnancy test when their period is late. The absence of a period may be due to the fertilization of an egg, but there are a number of other factors that may have delayed menstruation
When to take a pregnancy test?
Fertilization causes the beta hCG hormone to start rising in a woman’s body, which is also present in the urine. It is thanks to it that we can perform a pregnancy test at home. The aforementioned hormone does not appear earlier than 7-10 days after conception, which is why it is worth taking a pregnancy test after more than a week of intercourse. However, it is best to wait until the date of the expected menstruation
Sensitivity of a pregnancy test
The sensitivity of the test that we buy at the pharmacy is also very important. Very sensitive tests can be taken as early as 10 days after potential fertilization
- 10 days after conception pregnancy can be detected by tests with a sensitivity below 500 IU/l
- 14 days after conception a test with a sensitivity of 500-800 IU/l can detect pregnancy
- 21 days after conception pregnancy can be detected by a test with a sensitivity of more than 800 IU/l
If you do not want to wait that long to confirm the pregnancy you can decide to do a blood test after only 7 days. On its basis, the level of beta hCG hormone is measured, which clearly indicates that fertilization has occurred
Read also: How to read a pregnancy test result? What does one line mean and what does two?
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