AN IMMUNOLOGICAL PREGNANCY TEST

Abstract

ABSTRACT An immunological method for the assay of chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) in human urine has been described in detail. The method is useful as a simple and rapid pregnancy test and can be applied for quantitative determinations of HCG in urine. Morning urine from 306 women were examined; 212 were found to be pregnant by the haemagglutination inhibition reaction and the pregnancy was confirmed by ordinary pregnancy tests; 94 women were not pregnant and the urine of these women gave in no case a haemagglutination inhibition reaction. Quantitative determinations of HCG were performed in the urine of 103 women in early pregnancy. The urinary excretion of HCG increased following the missed menstrual period and reached in the 8th week of pregnancy a level of about 160.000 IU of HCG per liter of urine.