When i ordered the initial lyme testing from igeneX there were two panels. One was for serum and one for whole blood.
When I asked the girl which one to get, she said it didn't matter, so i got the whole blood, but now i read this by Dr. C. of Missouri,
"Serum contains antibodies made by the immune system. Electricity is used to push the serum through the thin gel strips for the Western blot. If there are any antibodies against parts of Borrelia burgdorferi present in your serum, and these parts are impregnated on the strip, the antibody will complex (bind) to that part."
Now I am confused and wondering if I should have ordered the panel with serum and not whole blood.
The panel is 5010 from igeneX. Did anyone use this panel and were you happy with the results?
posted
It is pretty much a toss up either way in my opinion -- the odds of getting a positive PCR are not very good. I have seen numbers quoted anywhere from 5% to maybe 20 or 25% I think.
That said, hubby had both whole blood and serum tested by PCR 2 times I think with IGeneX -- once both were negative and the other time whole blood was negative and serum was positive.
Of course of the duck neurologists we saw said that was impossible -- to get both positive and negative results from the same blood sample.
But then again the neuro gave us a written list of 5 reasons why hubby could not have Lyme disease and they are so ridiculous it is laughable.
Tremor is not a symptom of Lyme disease, he got sick the wrong time of the year, he did not have a rash, he didn't have a positive ELISA or Western Blot and the 5th one escapes me right now.
If your results are negative, unless you need the results for insurance (to get antibiotics), social security or disability I would not waste the money retesting if this was me.
This is not medical advice, just my opinion based on experience.
Bea Seibert
Posts: 7306 | From Martinsville,VA,USA | Registered: Oct 2004
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