Lyme disease is most common vector-borne disease in the United States. It is caused by the bacterium Borrelia Burgdorferi, a pathogenic gram-negative bacterium belonging to the class Spirochaetes. It is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blacklegged ticks.
Lyme disease is diagnosed based on symptoms, physical finding (e.g. rash), and the possibility of exposure to infected ticks. The symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, and a characteristic rash called erythema migrans.
Solaris Diagnostics Laboratory can now perform testing for Lyme disease (Total, IgG and IgM antibody) using ELISA platform with turnaround time of 24 hours from the time it is received in the laboratory.
Key points to remember.
- Lyme disease tests are designed to detect antibodies made by the body in response to infection.
- Antibodies can take several weeks to develop, so patients may test negative if infected only recently.
- Antibodies normally persist in the blood for months or even years after the infection is gone; therefore, the test cannot be used to determine cure.
- Infection with other diseases, including some tickborne diseases, or some viral, bacterial, or autoimmune diseases, can result in false positive test results.
- The tests give results for two types of antibody, IgM and IgG. Positive IgM results should be disregarded if the patient has been ill for more than 30 days.