Positve pg test after miscarriage -- when can I be sure?

[d4phne]

I miscarried four weeks ago (first pregnancy). I had a blighted ovum and found out at week 11 1/2 when I had my first scan. It was a huge shock, since I had no indications that something was wrong. I had an ERPC 4 weeks ago, soon after I found out.
I haven't had a period yet and today I took a pregnancy test that came out positive. I know that the hGC can be in your system for several weeks after the mc and lead to a false positive, but wonder for how long? When will I know for sure? Was it foolish to try so soon? Is anybody out there who became pregnant in the first cycle after m/c? When can the first scan be done to see if there is an embryo? Thanks, D4phne

Firstly, I am very sorry that you have been through this. It sounds devastating to find out at the 12 week scan.

I thought that with an ERPC the hormone levels went down much faster than with a natural m/c, and although these things vary so much woman to woman, 4 weeks seems quite a long time to have the hormones after and ERPC.

Was the line faint? What sensitivity of test did you use? I ask because if you were to wait 2 days and test again then the line should be darker or show quicker if you are pg, whereas if it is just the same or lighter then that might mean that it is just residual hGC.

I think they'll be able to see whether there is something there at around 5 weeks(??), although I think it is around 6 or 6.5 weeks for heartbeats to show.

Good luck xx

I had a missed mc which was diagnosed at 12 weeks - I started bleeding naturally a week later.
3 or 4 weeks later I got ovulation pain and we started trying. I can't recall how quickly I did a test but it was a very definite positive (interestingly the tests from the previous pg had all been faint or even negative initially).
I am now 31 weeks pg. I heard afterwards that it can be quite easy to fall pg straight after a mc as your body is primed up and ready to go (as such).

Dear Rubles,
thanks for your message and compassion. I just checked and the sensitivity of the test is 25mlU/mL.
The line was faint, but appeard fast. I would be in the first two weeks. I like your idea of testing again in a couple of days and seeing if it is still there. I seem to fall in the category of the women who can't wait to become pregnant again
after a m/c, although
I was 35 years happy without having a child. I know I just have to wait four weeks and see if I still test positive, but the waiting and not having control over what's happening is driving me crazy. And then, even if I were pg, there is still a
25-59% chance of loosing it again. D

Hi cupsnakes
Congratulations and all the best for you!
So you didn't wait until your period came back, but everything went well so far? That is a relieve to hear. Thanks for sharing.

yup, no period at all. I've been trying to remember how quickly I tested but I can't recall it. It probably was only a couple of weeks after the ovulation pain.
Good luck.

Will you let us know how you get on?

Cupsnakes, I am sorry to hear of your loss. It must be hard being pg again after having had a mc. I think even if there is joy over the new pregnancy, the pain over the loss will never go away entirely. The mc has really fundamentally changed my life and I am still catching up trying to understand why it had such a prefound impact on me. Part of it is my personal situation: my husband lives in the US and having a family would have meant that one of us would have quit his/her job and we would have moved together. Now everything seems to be open again.

Rubles, I will let you know how thing progress. Might be a couple of weeks though before I will know for sure. Stay posted :-)

Hi D4phne,

So sorry to hear about your miscarriage.

I had a miscarriage in August at 7 weeks and I had to have a blood test the week after my miscarriage started (I was bleeding) to check that my hormone levels had gone back to normal, which they had. I guess as you were further along than me it might have taken longer for your levels to drop so you could still have some of the hormone in your system. But as I say with me - a week later my hormone levels had gone back to normal.

Good luck xx

I had a ERPC on 18th Sep and baby had died 5 weeks before that. Did a test this morning and very faint positive. Don't know what to think!...

Edie. Ooh! I would say you should do the same as D4phne and test in at least 2 days time. If you are pregnant then the line should be noticeably darker by then. That is what I'd do anyway.
Fingers crossed for you both.

Hi edie123,

So sorry for your miscarriage. It's so bad to find out that something had gone wrong weeks before and not having had any signs....

So, my ERPC was 4 days after yours. That's interesting. How far along were you? I was in week 12, but the placeta was only as big as in week 7. I read somewhere on the net that the hormones return to normal within 10-35 days with median 19 days. For me it has been 31 days now, so it could just be a leftover hormones. The test itself said it can give incorrect results up to eight weeks after a miscarriage, but I guess they want to be sure....

Amester, so sorry about to hear your miscarriage and to learn that you were bleeding. But it is good that they checked your hormone levels. I wish they would do that routinely and provide better aftercare. After the surgery I was just dismissed and left to deal with everything by myself. I could have done with a little professional help, e.g. in this issue.

D4phne

My god im going out of my mind, so confused!!! My miscarriage was missed which makes it more complicated. Baby died 3 months ago!! Op for me was 5 weeks ago. How are you coping? We mustn't get our hopes up...

PS baby died at 5 weeks old but not noticed until 10 week scan.

this is a bit late, but i've only just seen this.
i had a missed m/c at the start of June - at 10 and a half weeks or so. I didn't have an ERPC as I'd already started to bleed a bit.
That was the 2nd of June. I am sure I ovulated a couple of weeks later, but we'd been told to wait for a period, and anyway my husband was really unnerved by everything and not at all sure about trying again soon anyway. Period started on the 26th, and I conceived a fortnight later.
Anyway the point of this is to say that I think that it's quite possible to conceive again really quickly.
I was then completely freaked out by being pregnant again so soon, and convinced everything would go wrong. Had a scan at 5+3 and they were almost sure they saw a heartbeat; confirmed at 7. I'm now 17 weeks, and all seems, touch wood, to be fine.
Not sure if this is helpful, or if events have overtaken this thread.
But oh, miscarriage throws everything you thought you knew about yourself up in the air. I had no idea, no idea at all that it would be as traumatic as it was, and I feel for you so much. I really hope things work out happily for you very soon

Thanks Littlefrog. I am mostly poting about this in TTC board and MC one too. Gonna see GP monday for another pg test and then some blood tests if still not confirmed. Fingers crossed-thanks for your post xx