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Symptoms & Tests

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Information on tests

Overview

Simple Western Blot interpretation Dr C.R. Jones

Western Blot interpretation- compilation list from Doherty

REASONS WHY A SERONEGATIVE TEST RESULT MIGHT OCCUR

Igenix Laboratory specializes in tests for tick borne disease. Most accurate lab.

Sonoma County Health Dept Lab has a test for WA-1 Babesia & others. It's about $30 & you don't have to be a county resident. You do need your doc to send it to them- information on site.

Spinal Taps; Lyme reverts to it's smaller cyst form within 24 hours of entering the spinal fluid and is generally not detected there when present. Also, lyme meningitis and inflammation present as an "aseptic" meningitis- it does not produce many white blood cells in the CNS. Spinal taps are pretty darn inaccurate for lyme disease. Also, the amount of spinal fluid extracted for the lyme disease test last I heard was a large amount- more than for other tests. This may not be very uhmmm... comfortable. Please do a google on this or ask your support group.

Cross reactivity ;

J Infect Dis. 1987 Jul;156(1):183-8. Cross-reactivity in serological tests for Lyme disease and other spirochetal infections. Abstract discusses various borrelia species and other spirochetes.

Full text cross reactivity to leptospirosis and syphilis in humans (pdf file, 814kb) J Clin Microbiol. 1989 October; 27(10): 2152–2155. Cross-reaction with Borrelia burgdorferi antigen of sera from patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection, syphilis, and leptospirosis. WARNING: There is a lot of projection here in this very small study in the discussion. Most of the data quoted in the discussion is not related to this study but is compared to this study with results projected.

Cross reactivity to Leptospirosis and Syphilis in Dogs

Individual cases of cross reactions have also been reported for ehrlichiosis, rickettsiosis and brucella. Considering the propensity for co-infections in lyme it is a question as to whether these would be in fact be cross reactions or whether they might be a multiple infections interpreted as cross reactions.

Information on symptoms

Basic Information from ILADS (2 pages)

Overview of Neuropsychiatric
Lyme Disease Excellent!! Columbia University Lyme Research

Lyme Disease Info this web site has a symptoms compilation. This is an excellent site, well worth spending time on..

Controversies in Neuroborreliosis by Audrey Stein Goldings, M.D. Updated October, 2002

Burrascano

Lyme disease - don't let it happen to you Ron Ferris

Herx or Jarisch- Herxheimer (J-H) reactions. Here is a good and easy description of what a herx is by Donna Herrell, Director, Lyme Alliance Inc.

There is controversy over whether herx reactions in lyme, syphilis and other spirochetal infections are caused by toxins produced by the spirochetes. Or not. There is evidence that there are toxins on the surface of the Bb organism, but frankly, that stuff is beyond me. You can search pubmed and wade through the chemical analysis yourself if so inclined. Whatever the mechanism, herxes do occur and there are differences between herxes produced by various spirochetes, with the relapsing fever borrelia perhaps being the most severe.

Lyme as a differential diagnosis for Multiple sclerosis patients. Web Medic site; Scroll down, there are 2 very interesting published reports; "MS IS A CHRONIC CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM INFECTION BY A SPIROCHETAL AGENT" Vincent Marshall, DVM "Medical Hypotheses" (1988) 25, 89-92. And "MRI INSIGHTS" David E. Egerter Ph.D. Diagnostic Imaging, July 1992, pg. 63