posted
Does anyone know the procedure codes for the Lyme testing. I need it for the Elisa and Western blot and i need to know if there is an IgG and IgM test that can be run with the Elisa or if it can only be run with the Western Blot.
I called my insurance to see if they reimburse for the ingenix testing and they actually do these tests and send them to ARUP so I wouldnt have to pay anything going through them.
The only problem is my doctor is a neurologist and doesnt know the procedure test codes on what to order. If i can tell her what they are she is willing to order them.
My insurance also will not run a western blot if the elisa is negative...bummer! So im trying to decide on going through ingenix or my insurance.
I will be calling an LLMD in my area tomorrow for an appointment but im not sure if i need testing before that appt. Any thoughts on this?
Should i go to the appt first and go from there?
I previously posted all my symptoms and such and the quicker i can get all this ordered the better as I have been hospitalized twice this year alone and almost lost my life both times and none of my doctors can tell me whats wrong.
Seems like im on my own in all of this diagnosing stuff!! My faith in the medical community is diminishing daily...
Posts: 9 | From Utah | Registered: May 2011
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lululymemom
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 26405
posted
Yes, unfortunately many of us are on our own with this whole process. Igenex is the gold standard for testing and I personally would not waste my time and money on any other lab for the Western Blot IGG and IGM. You can call Igenex and they will ship out the test kit to you free of charge.
For basic testing the codes for IGG an IGM are 188 and 189 and you will pay $100 for each test. I would highly recommend testing for co-infections as well.
Also, the longer one has been sick the less likely it is for the test to show positive. Remember that Lyme is a clinical diagnosis as well as co-infections.
posted
stony brooke in NY takes insurance and is a good lab for lyme. u can have them report all bands
Posts: 105 | From Ca | Registered: Mar 2011
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posted
thanks everyone! with my ins the tests will be free if i go through their lap (arup) so i think ill do that first..cant hurt if its free, right?!..and if thats neg then i will go through ingenix.
I did get into see a LLMD next week which is a homeopath...I called all the ones in my area and all are homeopaths...is this normal?
SO they dont take insurance which again if they did it would be free. I just am hoping to find out whats going on with me!
It may not be lyme and thats fine but i need to rule it out because there are WAY to many similarities with coinfections/lyme than anything else we have found so far.
Posts: 9 | From Utah | Registered: May 2011
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posted
I think that you are right in pursuing Lyme. My daughter who was 15 when she got ill, was very sick. We live in a big city with a world renowned children's hospital. We went through their Infectious Disease clinic and at the onset they told me that they could tell my daughter was very ill, and that with the proper testing would find a diagnosis and she would get well.
Well they did test her for everything under the sun, but guess what? The only diagnosis they could come up with was fatigue casued by depression and they referred us to their psych clinic for teens.
Fast forward a couple of months, I was going along with the depression/fatigue diagnosis and found a doc who specialized in it. We filled out pages and pages of forms and at our first appt the doc said she thought it was Lyme, Erlichea and Babesia. We thought she was crazy because her Lyme test was negative just a few months prior.
We agreed to test through IGenix. Not only was she IGenix positive, she was CSC/NYS positive and also tested positive for Erlicheosis. She has been clinically diagnosed with Babesiaa and another speciality lab tested positive for Bartonella.
My husband has peripheal neuropathy and is totally disabled by it. His Neurologist can't figure out what is causing the PN. When I asked about Lyme, she laughed and said we don't have Lyme around here. Fast forward 12 months, and he gets tested through IGenix. He didn't have a positive test, but had enough reactive bands to go with a Lyme diagnosis.
He also tested positive for Bartonella and Erlichea. He's been treating for 10 months and is beginning to show improvement.
I know that this response is kind of off topic, but I wanted to share our experience and support you in going down the road in trying to figure out if it's Lyme.
Best wishes...
Posts: 333 | From Lyme Here Too | Registered: Mar 2010
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