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What can cause a false negative urine pregnancy test?
What causes a false-negative pregnancy test?
- Incorrect use of the pregnancy test. If you don’t follow the directions on the package, the pregnancy test will not be set up properly to test your urine.
- Used the pregnancy test too early.
- Miscalculated menstrual cycle.
- Diluted hCG levels.
- Too much hCG in the urine.
Is it possible for hCG to never show in urine?
An early pregnancy test might pick up very low amounts of hCG. However, it’s possible that you don’t have enough circulating hCG to get a positive result even on a sensitive test. Another common reason for getting a false negative is not having enough hCG in the urine you test.
Can a hormone imbalance cause a false negative pregnancy test?
A false-negative test can also happen if your levels of hCG become diluted (watered down) by drinking too much liquid before the test. This is why the home pregnancy test kits recommend you urinate first thing in the first morning to get an accurate result. This cause can happen whether you have PCOS or not.
Can you be pregnant but have no hCG?
However, in some rare cases, you may be pregnant, but not have enough HCG in your system – which means you won’t get a positive reading. HCG or human Chorionic Gonadotropin, is the hormone that your baby produces when you’re pregnant and is the key to your home pregnancy test giving a positive reading.
Can you have no hCG levels and still be pregnant?
Even if a complication associated with low hCG levels occurs, such as a miscarriage or an ectopic pregnancy, this does not mean that someone will be unable to get pregnant again or that their fertility is compromised. A successful pregnancy is still possible with low hCG levels.
Can too much hCG cause a false negative pregnancy test?
Ah, science. But hCG is also responsible for the hook effect giving you a false-negative pregnancy test. The hook effect happens when you have too much hCG in your blood or urine. How is this possible? Well, the high levels of hCG overwhelm the pregnancy test and it doesn’t bond with them correctly or at all.
Why does my pregnancy test say negative every time?
The test isn’t able to properly attach to any or enough of the right kind of molecules. This gives a false-negative reading. The hook effect incorrectly gives you a negative result on a pregnancy test. This can happen during early pregnancy or in rare cases — even into the third trimester, when it’s pretty clear you’re preggers.
Can a non-pregnant woman have hCG in her urine?
Technically, hCG tests are designed to qualitatively detect and/or measure the hormone in urine or blood and there are other reasons besides being pregnant that can cause hCG to be present. I can think of four different reasons why hCG could be present in a non-pregnant woman.
How can I avoid the hook effect on a pregnancy test?
Some doctors say you may be able to “MacGyver” a pregnancy test to avoid the hook effect. One way to do this is to dilute your urine before using a pregnancy test. After peeing in a cup, add a few tablespoons of water to your urine so it becomes lighter in color. This might work because it reduces how much hCG you have in your urine.