Pregnancy is an unforgettable period in the life of every woman. Sometimes, together with the joy of waiting for the future baby, a woman faces insurmountable difficulties that can completely change her whole life, and not for the better.
Ectopic (ectopic) pregnancy often does not show itself until an emergency situation arises, when the health and life of the pregnant woman is at risk. In the future, a woman who has gone through this is faced with the problems of conceiving and carrying out the desired child.
The main signs of ectopic pregnancy
As a result of the fusion of the spermatozoon with the egg cell, one single cell is formed - the zygote, which in the process of division turns into an embryo. The main task of the embryo at this stage is to reach the uterus in order to attach to its walls for further development.
Sometimes there is some kind of failure, which is why the embryo does not reach the uterus, attaches itself to the wrong place (most often in the fallopian tube), where it begins to actively develop, thereby destroying soft tissues that are not intended for such processes.
Doctors diagnose this pregnancy as ectopic. It is a dangerous gynecological pathology, with numerous possible complications and relapses.
Determining an ectopic pregnancy in the early stages is quite difficult, since all the symptoms of a normal pregnancy are inherent in it:
- morning sickness;
- change in breast sensitivity;
- delayed regular menstrual cycle;
- frequent urination;
- general weakness, drowsiness;
- increased appetite, changing preferences in food and smells;
- frequent mood swings, etc.
However, it is still possible to single out several symptoms indicating precisely ectopic pregnancy:
- pain in the abdomen (in the early stages, the pain may be insignificant, but with the growth of the egg cell, the effect on the organs increases, and therefore there are breaks in the soft tissues, thereby causing a sharp and prolonged pain);
- spotting from the genitals resembling menstruation;
- body temperature over 37 ° C;
- the result of the pharmacy test for the level of hCG in the urine is negative or, if there is a positive result, there is a weakly pronounced second band;
- low blood pressure.
A specialist, in this case, a gynecologist, during the examination and as a result of additional studies, can determine an ectopic pregnancy by:
- the size of the uterus, which does not correspond to the set period of pregnancy;
- low levels of hCG in the blood;
- the absence in the uterus of the ovum on ultrasound.
In this case, emergency qualified assistance of specialists is necessary.
Does the test show ectopic pregnancy before a delay
Sometimes women, burning with impatience to find out whether they are in an interesting position or not, before waiting for the next menstrual period, resort to pharmacy tests. Tests are known to respond to hormone levels in the urine produced by the forming placenta in the body of a pregnant woman.
A clear symptom of ectopic pregnancy is slow growth of hCG. That is why the tests carried out before the delay, with the wrong location of the embryo, most often turn out to be negative.
Does the test show positively for early pathology?
The results of tests carried out in the early stages of ectopic pregnancy may be positive, but with one small difference compared to traditional pregnancy: the second strip on the test may not be so bright or hardly noticeable at all.
What does the test for ectopic pregnancy
As described above, due to the low concentration of the hormone in a woman’s body, in which the embryo attached in the wrong place for it, the test result can be either positive, with a barely noticeable second stripe, or negative, depending on the duration of the test.
Sometimes, suspecting for an ectopic pregnancy, doctors perform a blood test at intervals of two days in order to determine the increase in the level of the hormone.
How to determine an ectopic pregnancy without a test
It is possible to reliably determine whether the gestational egg is in the uterus or not only after passing all the necessary tests and procedures: a blood test for progesterone and hCG, an ultrasound scan and laparoscopy of the internal organs to determine the exact location of the embryo.
When conducting home tests you can only learn about the possible presence of an interesting situation and make some assumptions about its features. The same applies to the measurement of basal temperatures, the increase in which indicates only the fact of an interesting position, regardless of the place of attachment of the embryo.
A woman should always listen to her body, especially in such an exciting and difficult period. Experts, even with the slightest suspicion of something wrong, recommend not to delay the visit to them, to exclude or, conversely, confirm ectopic pregnancy and take all necessary measures to solve the problem.
For more information about ectopic pregnancy, see the following video.
