Period Bleeding, 6.5 weeks, HCG level at 20 ?

Question

I have taken over 7 pregnancy test in all. One weekend I took 4, all were positive.I went to the Dr. and their urine test showed negative. I took 2 more test after that visit and it showed positive again. This morning I noticed blood in my urine and blood when I cleaned myself. It was no longer like the light brown spotting I had last week, but a brighter red. I took another test and it was still positive. I was immediately alarmed and went to the ER. They did another urine test which showed negative. And then they did blood work which showed my HCG level at 20. The doctor said that this is a positive test but the HCG level is very low for me being 6.5 weeks.He said he believed I was having a miscarriage. I am concerned however, because this pregnancy was caused due to the loss of the NUVA RING. I therefore have no idea when it got lost or when i could have possibly conceived. Could my HCG level still be normal if I were less far along than they think? Could I still be pregnant after the bleeding? Thanks, for easing my concerns.

Answer 1

Yes, you could be.  I've been though 4 miscarriages.  Two before my son and two after.  I too had positive pregancy tests but HcG was very low.  They also tested because I was spotting very early.  They even did an ultra sound and it showed and empty sack and they told me that it didn't appear I was pregnant and that I was having another miscarriage.  Well, they did the first HcG and it was 23 and then they did another one 3 days later and it had tripled so they called me in for another ultra sound.  This time we could barely see this tiny little heartbeat.  They figured I was like 3-4 weeks pregnant!!!!!  When I went back over my calendar and when my husband and I had had intercourse, I obviously got pregant like 1 or 2 days BEFORE my period was supposed to have started instead of in the middle of my cycle so it through the timing off!

My son is now almost 12 years old!!!!!!!

Just stay positive.  If it's meant to be and a healthy pregnancy, everything will be ok.

Answer 2

get yourself seen asap i have just been through this over the last week with  the hospital telling me the pregnancy will be ok but it wasnt i lost it today

Answer 3

20 is very low, i believe that it is supposed to double every day that you are pregnant, go back and have more blood drawn if it is lower than 20 you are having a miscarriage; some women spot during pregnancy but definately go have more blood drawn

Answer 4

Wow, hun, you have a lot on your plate right now. Wish I could help.  I'm going to pray for you.  Everything will turn out ok.  Best of luck.

Answer 5

Chelsea,

Get your butt into see a OB-GYN now if not yesterday!!!!!!

Answer 6

Your HCG levels are really low for 6.5 weeks. They should make you retest your HCG levels to be sure they are progressing. That is really the only way to tell if you are still pregannt.

Look at the chart below:

Key things to remember about hCG levels:

In a bout 85% of normal pregnancies, the hCG level will double every 48 - 72 hours. As you get further along in pregnancy and the hCG level gets higher, the time it takes to double can increase to about every 96 hours.

Caution must be used in making too much of hCG numbers. A normal pregnancy may have low hCG levels and result in a perfectly healthy baby. The results from an ultrasound after 5 - 6 weeks gestation are much more accurate than using hCG numbers.

An hCG level of less than 5mIU/ml is considered negative for pregnancy, and anything above 25mIU/ml is considered positive for pregnancy.

The hCG hormone is measured in milli-international units per milliliter (mIU/ml).

A transvaginal ultrasound should be able to show at least a gestational sac once the hCG levels have reached between 1,000 - 2,000mIU/ml. Because levels can differentiate so much and conception dating can be wrong, a diagnosis should not be made by ultrasound findings until the hCG level has reached at least 2,000.

A single hCG reading is not enough information for most diagnoses. When there is a question regarding the health of the pregnancy, multiple testings of hCG done a couple of days apart give a more accurate assessment of the situation.

The hCG levels should not be used to date a pregnancy since these numbers can vary so widely.

There are two common types of hCG tests. A qualitative hCG test detects if hCG is present in the blood. A quantitative hCG test (or beta hCG) measures the amount of hCG actually present in the blood.

Guideline to hCG levels during pregnancy:

hCG levels in weeks from LMP (gestational age)* :

3 weeks LMP: 5 - 50 mIU/ml

4 weeks LMP: 5 - 426 mIU/ml

5 weeks LMP: 18 - 7,340 mIU/ml

6 weeks LMP: 1,080 - 56,500 mIU/ml

7 - 8 weeks LMP: 7, 650 - 229,000 mIU/ml

9 - 12 weeks LMP: 25,700 - 288,000 mIU/ml

13 - 16 weeks LMP: 13,300 - 254,000 mIU/ml

17 - 24 weeks LMP: 4,060 - 165,400 mIU/ml

25 - 40 weeks LMP: 3,640 - 117,000 mIU/ml

Non-pregnant females: <5.0 mIU/ml

Postmenopausal females: <9.5 mIU/ml

Hope the best for you.....

Answer 7

unless you are insanely early in pregnancy, it sounds like a miscarriage to me with those numbers.

I'm sorry.  

Answer 8

20 is very low. If you are only 2-3 weeks it may be ok. The only thing you can do is go to your OB and have some blood drawn. What the doctors need to see is that the number increases. If they find HCG in your blood they will make you go every couple of days and retest to see if the numbers are doubling. What worries me most is the blood you are experiencing. If it is in your urine you may have a UTI. If it is definitely vaginal bleeding and is red you need to get checked out. Hope this helps. The link below shows normal HCG levels during pregnancy.