What's the chance of a positive test being wrong?

Question

I took an AccuClear pregnancy test this morning. It was an early detection one I believe. By the display it said that the line doesn't have to be nearly as dark as the control line. It was faint, but dark enough to where it stayed there for a long time and it was obvious there was a line there (you didn't have to tip the test in the light or anything). I checked it at the recommended time. Then two of my friends wanted me to take another one, this time an EPT, which is less accurate for early detection (before the period is due). It came out negative. There hasn't been much show of symptoms other than being sensitive to smells. The last "period" I had was shorter than usual and was spotty for quite a while (cuz it was, my bf n I had sex during the first part it was that light). If I was I would be about 3-5 weeks, depending on when I conceived (then or just under two weeks before). I was just wondering what the likelihood is that I actually am pregnant or that the test is wrong. Thanks

The second test was done at night

Oh, I had been stressed so I wasn't eating much. Now every time I eat, other than saltine crackers, it makes me feel sick (but I figure that's just cuz I haven't eaten much the past few days)-If I am, I'll make sure I eat more anyway :)

been stressed lately I mean, the past week or so, haven't been eating much for about 3 days (and feeling sick when I eat). Woke up in the middle of the night feeling sick once

Answer 1

Well i took a pregnancy test 7 full days before my period was due and got an accurate positive. The brand i used was Answer.

Could I have a false positive? Check out The Truth About False Positives for an in-depth look at false positives. Essentially, it is possible, but it's unlikely. If you get two lines, you're most likely pregnant. Exceptions: if you have been taking certain fertility meds with hCG, the test may be picking up the hCG from the meds and not an embryo. Also, some tests develop "positive" lines after the time limit. You should NOT read the test after the time limit (usually 10 minutes, but check the directions that came with the test.) Yes, this means you should throw the test away and NOT dig it out of the trash in three hours to see if a line magically appeared. And, if the "positive" line is gray or looks like a "dent" in the test, it is an evaporation line and not a true positive.

Lastly, if you have been pregnant recently, it's possible that the test is detecting residual hCG. However, if a pregnancy ends early on, it's unlikely that hCG will remain in your system very long, so most women have nothing to worry about here. (It's extremely common for women to conceive immediately following an early miscarriage; the body is "primed" for pregnancy, so to speak, and elevated progesterone left from the miscarriage gives the next embryo a great shot at a healthy implantation. So, most women really are detecting a new pregnancy.)

However, the more hCG you had in your system when the pregnancy ended, the longer it will take to dissipate. HPT's can even detect residual hCG for up to 6 weeks following a full-term birth. It's a possibility you should keep in mind if you get positive HPT results soon after a previous pregnancy ended.
***Accu-Clear 50 mIU***

Answer 2

It is really rare to receive a false positive. If you are 3- 5 weeks along it should not matter what brand or time of day you take a test. By that point ANY kind of home test will show a positive. With that being said, is it possible that you conceived later than that? I would suggest either taking another early results test (like First Response) with first morning urine, if you are pregnant it should also give you some sort of a line. Either way you might want to visit a dr because he/she can do a blood test to check for pregnancy (if you tell him what you wrote there shouldn't be any problem in getting a blood test done) and if you are not pregnant they might be able to tell you what caused the lighter period and false positive (since they are so rare, it might be worth checking into). Best Wishes!

Answer 3

It sounds like you may be pregnant. A false negative is definitely more common than a false positve. The reason being is the amount of the pregnancy hormone found in your system increases with each day. Some early test may pick this up and others may not. Pluse if you retested close together this could alter your results. I would wait a couple of days since the line was faint and test in the morning when accurate results are most likely. Good luck to you.

Answer 4

A positive is 99.5% accurate. A negative is 95% accurate. Did you take the second test the same day as the first but later in the day? That could be the reason, coupled with the fact that the second test wasn't as sensitve as the first. I'd consider myself pregnant for now, since false positives are so rare...you have to have hcg in your system to get a positive, and you have to be pregnant to have hcg. If I were you, I'd test again tomorrow morning with another early response type test (such as clearblue easy digital, which actually says the words "Pregnant" or "Not Pregnant" so there's no guesswork), and do it with first morning's urine, since that's the most concentrated. Good luck!

Answer 5

False positives are almost impossible as hcg levels have to be their for test to work. Its probably you are early on so some test will work better than others. Plus if you have tested at night or after drinking any drink it can make hcg levels lower. It sounds like your pregnant. but wait a couple of days and test with early morning urine. Make sure you read test in correct amount of time and hopefully it will be clear. good Luck

Answer 6

From what I have been told you NEVER get a false positive.. False negatives happen more often though.. The test I prefer to take are the digital readouts there are no guessing games with them you are either pregnant or not pregnant that simple, but it also sounds like you are to early to really have a lot of the hCG hormone in your body. Give it a few more days and test again, but with one test showing you positive I am going to go with you are pregnant.. Congratultions....

Answer 7

I had taken two home preg. tests and they both said they were positive. When they wanted me to get some x-rays done for something else I had to inform them about my results so they did a blood test to confirm it, 4 times (Yeah I said 4times) because they all came back "Inconclusive". When I went to my family doctor she said I was never pregnant and that I had received a false answer both times. I then went to my gynecologist and she told me that "in order for you to have a positive result you have to have a certain hormone in it. She looked at all of my test results and then informed me that I had indeed been pregnant but then I had suffered a miscarriage. Fortunately I got pregnant again and now have a BEAUTIFUL 4 month old daughter. So I say Congratulations to you and may you be blessed with a beautiful baby.

Answer 8

a 2nd line does sometimes show up if you read the test after a while in the trash. if you read on time then yes it's accurrate because it shows only if it detects a hormone. not like it would detect the hormone if you werent pg. take another one of the same test. maybe the test is better at detecting than the 2nd test you took.

Answer 9

if it says you are pregnant, there is a 99.9% chance you are pregnant. Congratulations!

www.peeonastick.com is the BEST site for HPTs and OPKs. They have done everything.

An false positive is usually the result of an evaporation line or an ovarian cyst (not the same cysts as in PCOS). Evap line is unlikely for you from the sounds of your story. But go to peeonastick.com--I went there all the time when I was trying (or NOT trying!!) to get pg. :)

Answer 10

hun, different tests read different levels of the HCG hormone in your urine. Some tests read lower levels. which could explain your faint reading of your first test. You can always wait a couple days like the test tells you to before doing another test. If you cant wait call up your doctor who can have blood tests done to confirm your suspicions