Pregnancy Test Strip: Cost, How to Use It and Interpretation of Lines.
Alot of people are looking for two lines after the test, while some are praying for just one line…What a world…….
Pregnancy test strip work by detecting the presence of hCG in your urine. The more sensitive the test is to hCG, the better it will be able to accurately test for pregnancy.
The appearance of of hCG in both urine and serum soon after conception and its subsequent rise during early gestational growth, make it an excellent marker for early detection of pregnancy.
Pregnancy test kits should be able to detect pregnancy as early as 7 to 10 days after conception (2 weeks of gestational age).
INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO USE PREGNANCY TEST STRIPS
1. The Pregnancy Test can be performed at any time of the day; however, testing first morning urine is preferable.
2. Urinate into a clean, dry cup or container.
3. Remove the testing device from the foil pouch by tearing at the notch. Hold the strip at the colored end. (Do not touch the arrow end; do not touch the test window/the middle part of the strip)
4. Holding the strip vertically, immerse the end of the strip with the arrows into the specimen. Do not immerse past the MAX line.
5. Take the strip out when the sample has migrated to the test window (at least 5 seconds). Lay the strip (MAX side facing up) flat on a clean, dry, non-absorbent surface.
READING YOUR RESULTS/INTERPRETATION OF LINES
While you are waiting for your result, you may notice a colored solution moving across the test strip. This is normal. You need to wait 10 minutes to confirm the result. The test should not be evaluated after 30 minutes. The exact color of the line is not important.
1 Line = Not Pregnant = Negative
If only 1 colored line appears as the control line, the test is negative and you can assume you are not pregnant.
2 Lines = Pregnant = Positive
If 2 colored lines appear, 1 as the testing line and 1 as the control line, the test is positive and you can assume you are pregnant. Even if the lines are very light in color, you can still assume you are pregnant.
Invalid Results
If the control line does not appear, the test is invalid. Invalid results may be an indication that the test strip was not thoroughly saturated in urine.
In this case, re-dip the test for at least 5 seconds and wait 10 minutes to read results. If there is still no control line, the test is invalid and you should retest the following day. Each test is designed for a single use and should not be reused.
HOW MUCH IS PREGNANCY TEST STRIP IN NIGERIA?
PT strips are very cheap and affordable. A single test strip is around N100 per strip and about N4000 for a pack containing 50 test strips. You can get PT strips in any pharmacy around you but beware of fake and make sure you buy strips that have not expired.
CAVEAT: P-Test kit can fail. Test may show two lines (positive) and you are actually not pregnant, it may also show one line (negative) and you are actually pregnant. The definitive and confirmatory test for pregnancy is ultrasound scan….and this is universal.
