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Lyme disease test 1-7 items?
My husband had a tick on him which we removed, but not sure how long it was there. He has had peripherial neuropathy which his doctor advised was something he needed to see a neurologist. I ask if a Lyme Disease test could be performed. The doctor glared at me and said "there has never been a case of lyme in Kentucky", but told me he would do the test. Today, my husband saw this doctor and was told out of the 7 items needed to prove lyme, all he had was muscle weakness. What kind of test did he do as I am unaware the ELISA nor the W. Blot show this particular result. Is this something we should follow up on as other symptoms he has are unexplained as well?
They told me that... I am in CA and there are no ticks here ,thing is I was infected by one in England in Deer country in Cornwall, they wre skeptical with me , , Hummm so I guess it doenst matter where you got it ..
The IDSA guidelines use a 2-tier blood testing scheme for detecting Lyme. In the 1st step, the ELISA test is used. This is like a screening test. If (and only if) the ELISA is positive, the 2nd step is to do a Western blot test, which looks for certain antibodies in the blood that are (mostly) specific to Lyme disease. There are criteria for how many "bands" (each band is like a different antibody) must appear on the Western blot to fit the CDC definition of positive.
All I can think of that would relate to the number 7 is that 2 IgM bands or 5 IgG bands are required for a CDC positive Western blot, and 2+5=7, but honestly that's a real stretch of a guess!
Lyme disease has been reported in all 50 states and every continent except Antarctica, so this guy doesn't seem too up to speed.
I'd suggest you look up the International Lyme And Associated Diseases Society's website (google ILADS, should come right up) to acquaint yourself with opinions and information on Lyme counter to what this doc told you.
If you look up and to the right on this page, you'll see a yellow button labeled "Health pages," and I think we have some good links and info there as well.
It's good to see a neuro to rule out other illnesses, but you will likely need to seek out a Lyme doctor to properly evaluate your husband for Lyme.
All I can think of that would relate to the number 7 is that 2 IgM bands or 5 IgG bands are required for a CDC positive Western blot, and 2+5=7, but honestly that's a real stretch of a guess!
Lyme disease has been reported in all 50 states and every continent except Antarctica, so this guy doesn't seem too up to speed.
I'd suggest you look up the International Lyme And Associated Diseases Society's website (google ILADS, should come right up) to acquaint yourself with opinions and information on Lyme counter to what this doc told you.
If you look up and to the right on this page, you'll see a yellow button labeled "Health pages," and I think we have some good links and info there as well.
It's good to see a neuro to rule out other illnesses, but you will likely need to seek out a Lyme doctor to properly evaluate your husband for Lyme.
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