Quick & Definitive Pregnancy confirmation needed. Or not?

[Trqc]

Hi Community, I need your best help to gain some definitive direction. I am a possible to-be 23yo father who is researching the possibility of my partner being pregnant (22yo), and how we can get a definitive answer quickly. I will try to make this short.

She and I were together on the evening of 4/25. During that encounter, the condom broke, but I had not came/climaxed, so we immediately got a new condom and continued on with no concern. On 5/7 she had menstrual cramps for a few hours but they were not followed by her period as she would usually expect within 2 hours. Instead, her period began on the morning of 5/9 but only lasted about 1.5 days whereas normally it is 5-6 days. She took a Home Pregnancy Test on the 5/11 and it was negative. She was then in a car accident on the 5/13 and while at the hospital, they tested her and that test came back negative also. She has been now having very mild lower left abdominal pain that is off & on. On 5/18 she seen her personal doctor and another pregnancy test was performed @ the doctor's office, it came back negative. However, her doctor said she could either be 1) Pregnant or 2) have a cyst on her ovary, BUT that she does have the "symptoms of a someone pregnant". She instructed her to take another HPT in a week and also "wait and see" how her next period turns out. Doctor also said if pain didn't go away in 1-2 weeks, call back to schedule a transvaginal ultrasound for possible cyst.

Here is the kicker: She already has 1 child. When she was pregnant with this child, the urine pregnancy tests did not show positive until she was nearly 3 months along. So we basically do not feel we can trust anything urine-based right now.

As you can guess this was unplanned so we need to know ASAP. One thing I am learning from all this online research is that nearly anything is possible given that our bodies react differently – so this is getting frustrating with so many possibilities. What do you think of the odds of her being pregnant given the situation and what should we do in order to find out within days and not weeks or  months of waiting? Should we be looking for a Transvaginal ultrasound? Abdominal ultrasound? A blood test for hCG?

As this point it has been nearly 4 weeks since we had sex and nearly 2 weeks since she had the 1.5-day period.

Thank you for your time!

[Clysta]

Doctors tests are actually less sensitive than OTC ones. They check for 50-100 miU of hCG, OTC can detect as low as 7.5--these are from First Response. They're the best on the market.

Implantation generally occurs 7-14 days after ovulation, but nothing will show on an ultrasound (nothing definitive) till around 5 weeks. In some cases it takes longer. I myself was 7 weeks 3 days when I had my ultrasound done and it took them a long time to find anything. This was with a trans-vaginal ultrasound too.

I don't have much to say about Planned Parenthood..I'm unclear about all they offer. For personal reasons, I dislike them though I understand they are a help to many people. If the blood tests shows hCG, it's pregnancy.

The reason some doctors are hesitant to do ultrasounds is not only are they expensive, but if a blood test doesn't detect the hormone it's pointless. hCG is vital to a pregnancy. If you show no hCG there is no baby.

As for an abnormal cycle, it can be from anything or even nothing. You can just be off. The human body isn't perfect and will mess up every now and then. It's quite common, even if not for the female in question. Are her cycles actually regular? And if so, what is her cycle length. When was her next expected one?

[Trqc]

Right, you would think it wouldn't be too likely she'd get pregnant! Those were my true initial thoughts until she had told me about her abnormal period. Then we got nervous.

As for her urine test with her first child, the doctor performed it when she just over a month late with her period and it still came back negative... from the doctor's office!! But then again I am reading that a urine test in the Dr.'s office is about as good as the best OTC ones. As for the Ultrasound: I am reading in a few places that the soonest a ultrasound could show anything would be 30 days or 4-5 weeks -- but is that after implantation or after conception, or what?

I am also reading that a blood test may be available from Planned Parenthood. My fear would be that it comes back positive and yet it could be one of these cysts I am reading about that secrete hCG. And then again if she is pregnant but hCG doesnt even hit detectable levels in her body as a whole until 2 or 3 months like last time then not even a blood test would show it.

These reasons are why I feel that a ultrasound is the best way since it's the closest you can get to literally looking around inside. Seems so simple but doctors are hesitant to do it without a positive urine or blood test.. WHY?? I will call Planned Parenthood tomorrow and ask them and then I'll consult with her.

[Clysta]

It doesn't sound likely that she would be. Symptoms mean and tell nothing. I've had "symptoms" of pregnancy in the past and it was something completely unrelated. In fact after I gave birth I still felt the same as I was when I was pregnant for another 5 months. Ultrasound would be pointless as it's too early. Nothing will show. If you doubt urine tests, have a blood draw done. The question is with her first child. Were the tests negative/inaccurate because of low hormones or how she tested. It's rare for a urine test to be inaccurate for so long and often the cause is because of poor test choice, misread instructions (you should use a high sensitivity test and use first morning urine) or testing too early. Often women will test once early and then ignore it for a long time. Then retest.