Pregnancy Videos
A number of early medical signs are associated with pregnancy. These signs typically appear, if at all, within the first few weeks after conception. Although not all of these signs are universally present, nor are all of them diagnostic by themselves, taken together they make a presumptive diagnosis of pregnancy. These signs include the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in the blood and urine, missed menstrual period, implantation bleeding that occurs at implantation of the embryo in the uterus during the third or fourth week after last menstrual period, increased basal body temperature sustained for over 2 weeks after ovulation, Chadwick's sign (darkening of the cervix, vagina, and vulva), Goodell's sign (softening of the vaginal portion of the cervix), Hegar's sign (softening of the uterus isthmus), and pigmentation of linea alba – Linea nigra, (darkening of the skin in a midline of the abdomen, caused by hyperpigmentation resulting from hormonal changes, usually appearing around the middle of pregnancy).
Pregnancy detection can be accomplished using one or more various pregnancy tests, which detect hormones generated by the newly formed placenta. Clinical blood and urine tests can detect pregnancy 12 days after implantation. Blood pregnancy tests are more accurate than urine tests. Home pregnancy tests are urine tests, and normally cannot detect a pregnancy until at least 12 to 15 days after fertilization. A quantitative blood test can determine approximately the date the embryo was conceived.
