My test does not have - or + or anything --- just options of positive, negative or reactive.
How can you tell??? Everything was neg and 41 was reactive.
* I am aware tests are not all that they are cracked up to be.
Posted by CaliforniaLyme (Member # 7136) on :
Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis- so is Ehrlichiosis considering that 1/2 the people that died of it in a study were repetitively sero (blood) negative. And re Babesiosis Krause said in his pediatric Babs article that 60% of Babs is blood negative unless acute-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So yeah, it's an understatement to say the tests suck. They really really REALLY suck*)!!!!!!!!!
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
What lab ran the test? Sounds like it wasn't Igenex. YOu really need a Western Blot thru Igenex to tell what's going on. The other labs do NOT test for all the bands!!
Do you have a lot of Lyme symptoms??
Dr. Bransfield's Reason's for Seronegativity the reasons why you can test negative and still have Lyme disease.
1. Recent infection before immune response 2. Antibodies are in immune complexes 3. Spirochete encapsulated by host tissue (i.e.: lymphocytic cell walls) 4. Spirochete is deep in host tissue (i.e.: fibroblasts, neurons, etc.) 5. Blebs in body fluid, no whole organisms needed for PCR 6. No spirochetes in body fluid on day of test 7. Genetic heterogeneity (300 strains, 100 in U.S.) 8. Antigenic variability 9. Surface antigens change with temperature 10. Utilization of host protease instead of microbial protease 11. Spirochete in dormancy phase (L-form) with no cell walls 12. Recent antibiotic treatment 13. Recent anti-inflammatory treatment 14. Concomitant infection with babesia may cause immunosuppression 15. Other causes of immunosuppression 16. Lab with poor technical capability for Lyme disease 17. Lab tests not standardized for late stage disease 18. Lab tests labeled "for investigational use only" 19. CDC criteria is epidemiological not a diagnostic criteria 20. Lack of standardized control 21. Most controls use only a few strains as reference point 22. Few organisms are sometimes present 23. Encapsulated by glycoprotein "S-layer" which impairs immune recognition 24. "S"- layer binds to IgM 25. Immune deficiency 26. Possible down regulation of immune system by cytokines 27. Revised W.B. criteria fails to include most significant antigens
Posted by Carol in PA (Member # 5338) on :
You asked this question before. Did you look at the responses?
If you have been reading and searching here, you have heard reasons for not relying on commercial testing: Quest & Labcorp.
I think you need to go over your symptoms and concerns with an llmd who can also run other labwork on you: Llmds are tuned into spotting patterns: immune system, thyroid, viruses, anemia, metals, mineral imbalances.