Your results show that you have the Lyme microbe in your body and that your immune system responded to the microbe with an antibody defense, therefore you had at one point or still do have an ongoing infection. The IgM used to indicate a new infection and an IgG used to indicate an old infection but they now understand that your body can continue to produce IgM antibodies that don't convert to IgG... therefore the IgM and IgG don't really tell you much.
The IGeneX test is more accurate because it includes two Lyme-specific bands that other Western Blot tests don't, they also utilize specific lab processes that are thought to produce more accurate results and I think one or two other benefits.
However, the IGenex is still a serology test that relies 100% on your immune function. There are multiple reasons why your immune system probably doesn't function perfectly if there is a Borrelia infection underway. The posts above lists a few of these but there is a much longer list I can share with you if you're interested - let me know.
So, if you have to rely on testing in order to get treated by an MD or to get insurance coverage, the IGeneX is the way to go. You can trust a positive result but IGeneX can still produce a false negative if your immune function is weak.
The range of response to the bands is
- (negative)
I (Indeterminate - or "weak")
+ (positive, or a sufficient level of antibodies were detected)
++ (more antibodies were found)
+++ (even more were found)
++++ (lots of antibodies were found - Eureka!)
Since the test detects your immune response (the development of antibodies) and not the actual microbe that causes infection (Borrelia), they only really tell you whether or not your immune system is functioning on a high level or a low level.
Regardless of a + or a ++++ response, if the band is a lyme-specific band, you have Lyme. Some MDs will suggest you REALLY have Lyme with ++++ but that's like saying you are REALLY pregnant. However, an negative or Indeterminate response does not tell you that you do not have lyme - all that indicates is that your immune response to that band could not be detected.
Since they don't really detect the microbe itself, nothing in these tests really tells you, definitively, about
the level of the Borrelia in your body or your level of infection. If the results are stamped as 'CDC positive', you just go with it and start treating. If they are stamped 'CDC negative', you need to know how to interpret the bands and take into account your other clinical factors and then decide whether or not to treat.
However, in your case, since you had a response to multiple Lyme-specific bands, the test does tell you, definitively, that you have Lyme DNA in your body.
(I edited my post to add this next paragraph for clarity:) If you have this much Lyme DNA in your body, you have the microbe and you likely have an infection. If you don't have symptoms, you might have a latent or dormant infection. If you also have symptoms you can be fairly certain you have an active infection. If you had only one DNA-specific band and NO history of being in an endemic area, had never had sex with anyone, and didn't have pets, never left the house and had NO symptoms... you could confidently question that one band. But you have mounting evidence.
See PeteZa's post where she lists what all the band responses indicate. For now, ignore IgM vs IgG (they are also not very informative) - this is how your results break down:
31 ++ (outer surface protein A (OspA),
specific for Bb)
39 I (Bacterial membrane protein A (BmpA);
specific for Bb)
41 ++ (flagellin protein of all spirochetes; this is usually the first to appear after a Bb infection and is
specific for all Borrellia)
58 + (unknown but may be a heat-shock Bb protein)
83 I (specific antigen for the Lyme bacterium, probably a cytoplasmic membrane-
specific for Bb)
93 I (an immunodominant protoplasmic cylinder antigen associated with the flagellin)
You likely can't have Lyme DNA in your body if the the original microbe wasn't also present at one time or another.
So, a knowledgable LLMD will know this is actually a test that shows the presence of the immune system's response to the lyme microbe. Most of us lymees who have been studying lyme for awhile also know this is a positive indication of lyme.
Unfortunately, the CDC requires positive reactions (+) to 5 specific bands to qualify for their surveillance criteria, which is very, very strict with a high bar for scientific purposes. For this reason, the CDC also cautions they should not be solely used to diagnose. Thanks to the IDSA and a LOT of controversial information they put out into the public, there is mass confusion amongst MDs as to how to properly interpret these results. Some just go by the "CDC negative" results typed on the test.
Hope this is helpful.
-p
Post Edited (Pirouette) : 10/17/2016 8:20:54 PM (GMT-6)