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Condom failure: Could my partner be pregnant?

by Peg Plumbo

question
My girlfriend finished her period on a Monday, and we had intercourse the following Friday using a condom. The condom fell off. Three days later, a home pregnancy test was negative. Was this too early to take a pregnancy test? Doesn't a woman have a few days of infertility after ending her period? Could my girlfriend be pregnant?

answer
A woman's cycle is calculated from the first day of her period to the first day of her next period. An average bleed lasts about four to seven days; ovulation usually occurs about day 14, counting from the first day of the period. If your partner has regular periods every 28 days, and nothing happened that month to disrupt this, then there probably are a few days when she would not be fertile after the end of the period. This is a pretty big ‘if’, however. Sperm can live for 72 hours, so they can hang around waiting for ovulation. This is why counting days is not a reliable method of birth control; there are too many variables involved.

It would have been best for her to seek emergency contraception, the morning after pill. The older combined oestrogen and progestogen pills are called Schering PC4. You take 2 tablets as quickly as possible, but within 72 hours of having unprotected sex. Exactly 12 hours later you take the remaining tablets. As of February 2000, there is now a new pill called Levonelle-2. This contains only one hormone - a progestogen. It is less likely to cause nausea.

A family planning clinic or your GP can provide this.

If your partner has regular periods that do not last longer than five days, I would calculate that she PROBABLY was not mid-cycle at the time the condom failed. If her cycles are longer, the chances are even better that she was not ovulating. Just remember to add in the days of the period to the equation.

It might be a good idea to get an additional method of birth control to decrease your risks of an accidental pregnancy. Your GP can give you information on the options available.

A home test should be positive about 10 to 14 days from conception, so it would have been a bit too early to be positive. She should repeat it at about the time her period would be due.

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