Many urine pregnancy tests have positive or negative results, although very occasionally a test will show neither of these results as described in the test instructions. Still, most tests have a conclusive result, whether accurate or not; There are also false positives and false negatives. With blood pregnancy tests, sometimes a test is read as specifically inconclusive, rather than positive or negative, and this usually means that some levels of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) were detected, but not enough to confirm. pregnancy or too much to record as a negative result. There are numerous things that can be responsible for an inconclusive pregnancy test, including the timing of the test, the use of fertility drugs, or a brief chemical pregnancy.
An inconclusive pregnancy test from a home kit indicates retesting with another test, preferably a different brand. For accuracy, the test should be more sensitive to hCG levels, especially if done before a missed period. Tests that can assess hCG at levels of 20-25 milli-international units per milliliter (mIU/ml) are more likely to detect pregnancy at an earlier stage.
There can still be problems with the tests that may have more to do with the way they are manufactured; some will just be faulty. Alternatively, saturating a test with urine sometimes causes the test to malfunction. For further quality control, repeating a test a day or two later usually clears up confusion about inconclusive pregnancy test results, and if this isn't adequate, testing at a doctor's office might be necessary or a laboratory blood test.
It is important to note that most urine pregnancy tests will be inconclusive except by some kind of accident. They don't test positive unless they detect hCG at the level to which they are sensitive. In most cases, hCG readings below this amount will simply produce a negative reading.
There is a lot of contrast when taking a blood test as you can measure the actual amount of hCG levels and determine the result based on the specific reading. Many blood tests view amounts from more than 1 mIU/ml to 24 mIU/ml as an inclusive pregnancy test. The presence of hCG could indicate pregnancy, and repeat testing in 48 hours or more is usually indicated.
These low amounts of hCG leading to an inconclusive pregnancy test can be attributed to numerous things. Fertility drugs have a known history of both false-positive and inconclusive results. Very early in pregnancy, hCG levels can be very low, so a low reading can be positive, and a second test in a few days would confirm this by showing a higher hCG reading.
Sometimes women are also briefly pregnant, but the miscarriage occurs before the start of the next period. This is called a chemical pregnancy. Pregnancy tests before the missed period might show a slight elevation of hCG which is still an inconclusive pregnancy test.
A repeat test several days later could confirm a chemical pregnancy, if the hCG levels have decreased or are not increasing. Even more rarely, growths in the reproductive tract can also create some and inconclusive hCG tests. If necessary, ultrasound can also assess inconclusive results, although the best readings are generally not accurate for diagnosis until about five weeks into the pregnancy.