Pregnancy Tests Reviews

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Pregnancy Tests Reviews

Updated May 2008

Best Pregnancy Tests Reviews: (out of 13)
Consumer Reports, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Yale-New Haven Hospital Healthlink

Best Pregnancy Tests: (out of 25)
First Response Early Result, Clearblue Easy Digital Pregnancy Test

Fast Answers - Best Pregnancy Tests
Top Rated What the Research Says
•  First Response Early Result
   (*est. $12 for two-strip kit)

>> Where to buy

Best home pregnancy test.

According to reviews, First Response Early Result is the most reliable pregnancy test, delivering the earliest possible results. First Response consistently detected 12.5 mIU of hCG (an early pregnancy hormone) in product testing, making it the most likely pregnancy test on the market to detect pregnancy on the first day of a missed period (95% of the time in product testing). Plus, reviews say that First Response even detected hCG levels as low as 6.3 and 6.5 mIU, soon after implantation -- even before a missed period. First Response is available in one-, two- and three-strip kits. Experts say that two-strip kits are best, since most women will want to test twice, waiting a week before the second test. (compare prices)
•  Clearblue Easy Digital Pregnancy Test
   (*est. $19 for two-test kit)

>> Where to buy

Digital pregnancy test.

Digital pregnancy tests aim to eliminate some of the guesswork when trying to interpret the lines of dye that indicate a positive result in regular tests. The Clearblue Easy Digital pregnancy test displays the words "pregnant" or "not pregnant" in a small window. Clearblue detects down to 25 mIU of hCG. (compare prices)
>>  Comparison Chart

Full Story
What the experts say, our analysis, and more...
Updated May 2008

Identifying the best home pregnancy tests comes down to two criteria: sensitivity and ease of interpretation. For evaluations in both areas, we turned to comparative reviews by Consumer Reports magazine and a study in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, both of which compare more than a dozen brands of home pregnancy tests. Consumer Reports' testing isn't as up-to-date as that of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (though both studies are more than three years old). Both reviewers evaluate 18 pregnancy tests, and reviews agree on the same winner. We also examined listings of detected hCG levels among home pregnancy tests at FertilityPlus.org, MommyGuide.com and BabyHopes.com, none of which perform their own testing. The most up-to-date of these hCG charts is at Baby Hopes, who last updated their information in July 2007.

The study by Cole and associates in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology found that two brands had "technical or design problems." One in six Confirm home pregnancy tests and three in six Clear Choice home pregnancy tests gave a false-positive result. Some brands, including Answer Quick & Simple, Sav-on from Osco drugstores, Clear Choice and Confirm (all *est. $9 to $14), also failed to display a control line, which indicates that the test is working correctly.

Durex Canada announced in March 2007 that would voluntarily withdraw Confirm Clearly Smart Pregnancy Tests from the market due to "an unexpected amount of consumer complaints." The blogger at Tammy’s Recipes even reports that her husband tried this test, and it showed that he was pregnant. Anyone who has purchased this test and wishes to receive a refund may do so by filling out a form on the Confirm Clearly website.

Since many women want to know as soon as possible whether they're pregnant, tests with increased sensitivity have been developed and have flooded the market in recent years. Still, it doesn't matter how sensitive a test is if you have trouble deciphering the results. All tests should have a control line to indicate the test is working properly. Most use a second line, either in a separate window or in a plus-sign shape, to indicate a positive result, but some, like Clearblue Easy Digital and e.p.t 1-Step Digital, have a digital display that says either "pregnant" or "not pregnant."
 ... Continued
Consensus Report

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

# of Picks Model (With Retailer Links) Details from Amazon.com
3 First Response (*est. $12 for two-strip kit) details
2 Fact Plus (*est. $17 for three tests) details
2 e.p.t ( *est. $14 for one strip , $17 for two strips) details
1 each Clearblue Easy Digital , Equate, Answer Quick & Simple Early Result

First Response is top-rated by three reviewers, including the two best resources, for being the most sensitive test on the market. Clearblue Easy Earliest Results comes in second in clinical trials to First Response. It has been updated as Clearblue Easy +/- Results. Equate (Wal-Mart's store brand) is recommended in one review, although one of our top sources found some tests failed to work during product testing in the past.

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Pregnancy Tests Reviews