There are home pregnancy tests that are very common these days to find out in case you are expecting or not. Sometimes they show a positive pregnancy test but not pregnant in reality.
Plus, most of the home pregnancy tests are also dipsticks. They are actually placed into the urine stream. That stick can actually detect the human chorionic gonadotropin or hCG. It is a hormone that is produced during early pregnancy.
There are a few pregnancy tests that detect hCG early in the pregnancy. The famous home pregnancy tests could be quite accurate, but also they are not foolproof.
The positive pregnancy test but not pregnant could occur for so many different reasons. It is also crucial to remember that when you got the positive pregnancy test then you must see the doctor in order to begin prenatal care.
Here are false positives on the home pregnancy tests.
-
Chemical Pregnancy
It is possible that you got a positive pregnancy test at home even in case you are not technically pregnant. It’s referred to as a false positive.
It is normally caused by the chemical pregnancy. The chemical pregnancy happens in case the fertilized egg that is called an embryo is not able to grow, or implant, very early on. It could happen for so many reasons.
The early pregnancy loss does not happen because of anything a female has done. This might be due to problems within a female’s uterus that include:
- scar tissue
- fibroids
- the congenital uterine anomaly which causes some irregular-shaped uterus
-
Ectopic Pregnancy
A fertilized egg could implant itself just outside of the main cavity of the female’s uterus. It causes ectopic pregnancy.
The ectopic pregnancy usually happens in case the fertilized egg is stuck in the fallopian tube during the journey to the female’s uterus. Such a kind of ectopic pregnancy is known as tubal pregnancy.
The following reasons might lead to ectopic pregnancy:
- inflammation or scar tissue in a fallopian tube
- misshaped fallopian tube
- history of previous uterine infections
The ectopic pregnancies could also happen in the ovary, cervix, or abdominal cavity.
The ectopic pregnancy could not actually become a normal pregnancy. Also, the embryo is not viable, as there is no place for this to grow.
-
Recent Abortion or Miscarriage
You might continue to a positive test for the pregnancy that follows the loss of your pregnancy. It might be either through abortion or miscarriage.
During your pregnancy period, the hCG level continues to increase because the placenta is growing that is it doubles every few days & also peaking at about 10 weeks. As the pregnancy ends, levels of hCG start to recede and it is a very slow process.
So, the hormone could remain in the urine and blood for up to 6 weeks that follow the end of a pregnancy. It is also possible to get the false-positive test until the hCG levels are returned to the pre-pregnancy state.
In case the miscarriage is spontaneous then it is possible that all pregnancy-related tissues were not eliminated. This causes the hCG levels to stay elevated.
While this happens, a small surgical procedure is needed for removing the tissue.