LAB INDICATES PREGNANCY BUT DR. SAYS OTHERWISE

It was like a game of puzzle. She had the letters P-R-E-G-N, she only needed the letters A,N,T to score 100 points to win her opponent but the gods weren't on her side. It was her last move and all that was left in her tray was N,O,T.

Azuka missed her menses for about two cycles with symptoms suggestive of pregnancy. She obtained a pregnancy test strip from a nearby patent medicine store, rushed into her rest room as though she was in a hurry to catch up with her flight. After struggling with her tight bum short which almost made her irrigate her limbs with hot tempered urine, she got a sample and quickly conducted the test.

While she waited for the result, she made herself a little more comfortable by deflating her gut. The resulting phonics is better imagined. Amidst the performance, she suddenly exclaimed,
Aaaaaaaaah! Obago!! Azuka, you are too much, she said to herself on sighting double lines on the strip. She then sprung up from the toilet seat to do the kerewa dance, out of excitement.

One week later, she visited a clinic on account of blood stain which she observed after cleaning herself up.

After an ultrasound scan investigation, the doctor informed her that there was no evidence of pregnancy.
To her disappointment, she turned round to confirm if she was really in the right place and when she turned to the doctor, her forehead furrowed, her pupils dilated and her voice echoed a masculine tone as she asked the doctor to repeat himself. He tried to calm her down but the more he tried, he met with stiffer resistance. There must be a mix-up somewhere, it's probably someone else's report because am double sure about being pregnant.
With these words, Azuka walked out of the doctor's office angrily to a medical laboratory for a repeat pregnancy test. The result was contrary to the doctor's opinion. Quack doctor, she said, I knew I was pregnant.

She decided to visit another health Care facility to book for Antenatal Care but the same issue reared its ugly head again. She wished the doctor would say something different/positive but he looked at her in the face and unequivocally told her that she wasn't pregnant. This time she was broken, speechless and confused. She bent over the table and sobbed...
Madam are you alright? Asked the doctor. How can I be alright when you people are against my pregnancy? I don't understand you madam, the doctor replied. As though she was recovering from her mishap, she narrated her experience to the doctor and ended her story with this question,
How possible is it that I missed my period and confirmed my pregnancy with a lab test even with a recent one yesterday and you still say am not pregnant? The doctor gave her these explanations. 👇

FALSE-POSITIVE B-HCG

B-HCG stands for beta human chorionic gonadotropins. It's a hormone produced by a placental precursor. It's this chemical that your test strip looks for in pregnancy test. When the strip says it's present (by showing two lines) in a person who actually is not pregnant it's referred to as false positive and can be seen in conditions like:


INTERFERING ANTIBODIES: two persons (antibodies) are needed to indicate the presence of B-HCG in the urine or blood. The capturing antibody catches and holds the B-HCG in place while the signalling antibody binds to the chemical and announces it's presence by showing double lines. In some individuals there's a special antibody called interfering antibody. It gives the signalling antibody the false impression that it has captured the chemical thereafter the signalling antibody announces without confirmation, resulting in false positive result.

EXPIRED TEST KIT: every test kit has expiry date beyond which it's sensitivity and specificity is questionable. Hence an expired test strip would most likely give a false positive result.

CHEMICAL/BIOCHEMICAL: it is possible that she WAS pregnant but lost it before her presentation to the clinic. Sometimes pregnancies occur but for different reasons fail to continue. The HCG resulting from such pregnancies lingers for a while, up to a month, before it is completely removed from the blood. Therefore within this time pregnancy test would be positive.

CANCER: the tissues of pregnancy notably "the trophoblast" may under go abnormal development following chromosomal abberation resulting in Molar pregnancy, a condition referred to as "Gestational Trophoblastic Disease. This is a rich source of B-HCG which can be identified in pregnancy test.

PITUITARY HCG: the pituitary gland is an endocrine gland. It controls the reproductive system and in turn gets feedback regulation from same. When ovarian function declines significantly, feedback is lost and it produces significant amount in B-HCG. This is common above the age of 40 years.
This gland also produces other hormones that have similar structure with B-HCG viz, Follicle Stimulating Hormone,Thyroid Stimulating Hormone and Luteinizing Hormone which can give a false positive result.

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