Lyme Disease Diagnosis and Testing

Diagnosis can be challenging because…

The early stage symptoms resemble the flu.
The late stage resembles many other diseases.
Many people never saw the tick and didn’t know they had a tick bite.
Many people with Lyme disease have negative test results.
Many doctors are unaware of the Lyme disease epidemic here and don’t consider the diagnosis.
Many doctors are unaware that a person with a negative test can still have Lyme disease.

Blood must be fresh for the most accurate results.
When blood is being sent out-of-state, it should be drawn Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, and sent overnight by Federal Express.
The CDC says Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis, but testing can be used to confirm a diagnosis.
The CDC doesn’t recommend testing in the early stage, because treatment needs to begin immediately, and it can take 4-6 weeks for antibodies to develop.
The CDC recommends the ELISA, followed by a Western blot if the ELISA is positive.
These are antibody tests. Lyme disease suppresses the immune system, so many patients never test positive.
Studies reveal that the ELISA is only 45% accurate.
Most Lyme disease specialists don’t use the ELISA. It’s no better than flipping a coin.
Igenex Laboratories in California has the best Western blot test for Lyme, but even it can miss some cases.
Another good test is the CD-57 test. It can detect Lyme disease and monitor treatment progress.