spinal tap

My neurologist wants to do a tap, just in case to look for stuff like lyme.

Me, 25 male. left sided facial numbness (mild) started 2.5 years ago. Normal MRI-MRA

2 months ago, daily headaches, light sensativity, some mild vertigo came on.

I had a MRI-MRA exactly one month ago, that was NORMAL.

Had, an eye exam this week. Looked good, no inflmation on slit lamp, or on dilation.

Tap, is for next week.

Is this safe? I just dont want to have Increased Pressure or something like that, then get the tap done as that could be dangerous.

does it hurt? they said they are using xray guidance

Thanks

[JackieCalifornia]

Greetings.  Quite a few people posting here have had spinal taps on the way to a diagnosis, but I recall that for many, the tap did not show Lyme -- the Lyme bugs just don't seem to favor spinal fluid.  The tap might be useful for ruling out other ailments, but perhaps not so useful for diagnosing Lyme.  Others here can comments -- I'm not medically trained, so don't rely on me for medical advice.

Have you had any other testing for Lyme or tickborne diseases?  

[wonko]

"Lumbar puncture has also been disappointing as a diagnostic test to rule out concomitant central nervous system infection. In Lyme disease, evaluation of cerebrospinal fluid is unreliable for a diagnosis of encephalopathy and neuropathy because of poor sensitivity. For example, pleocytosis was present in only one of 27 patients (sensitivity 3%) and with only seven cells. The antibody index was positive (>1) in only one of 27 patients (sensitivity 3%). An index is the ratio between Lyme ELISA antibodies in the spinal fluid and Lyme ELISA antibodies in the serum. The proposed index of 1.3 would be expected to have even worse sensitivity."

source:
http://www.lymeiniowa.org/ILADS.htm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had a lumbar puncture and it did test negative for Lyme.  As JackieCalifornia notes above, many Lyme patients have negative lumbar punctures.  It is good for ruling out other conditions, but not a good test for Lyme itself.

Mine was x-ray guided and not that bad, though it is by definition traumatic to have a big needle stuck into your back.  Have some one drive you and rest flat after the procedure.  They told me I could go back to work that day, but I didn't want to risk the awful headache that can occur if the puncture leaks.

[patsy10]

I had a spinal tap twice.  It was difficult both times.  I had the headache the second time.  

I had it to rule out other diseases like MS.  From what I have read, lyme rarely shows up in spinal fluid even in CNS lyme.

[Hope75]

Had it too, to rule out MS.  I felt better that MS testing was negative.  It does not hurt at all.  I had it under x-ray guidance too.  Didn't feel a thing and was truly shocked.

Bad news - I layed flat like I was told and got the spinal headache 48hrs after the tap.  I got my tap on Fri, rested Sat, and then cleaned house on sunday, rigorously.  I think that is what gave me the spinal headache.  It was quite terrible but only when I sat up.  So, it's a good excuse to lay flat on your back for a couple of days.  If I had followed the rules of no heavy lifting/rigorous activity for 72hrs I probably wouldn't have gotten the headache:)

It is a poor test for Lyme I think, as the others stated, so you will want to be clear about what they want to test your CSF fluid for, because you would rather do a tap only once  of course.