How Soon After I Get Pregnant Do Pregnancy Tests Work?
Most home pregnancy tests can detect pregnancy as early as the fourth day after a missed menstrual period. Blood tests can detect pregnancy as early as three to five days before your period is due. The placenta must be established before a pregnancy can be detected. The placenta forms after the fertilized egg has traveled from the fallopian tube and has implanted in the uterine lining. Once implantation has occurred, beta-hCG is produced and begins to enter the mother’s bloodstream. Thus beta-hCG can be detected in the blood as early as three to five days before a period is due. Beta-hCG is excreted from the mother’s body through her urine (after it has been filtered through the kidneys). The hormone gets diluted in the urine and therefore urine pregnancy tests are not positive until after the period is due (when levels of beta-hCG are higher).
