Posted 2/2/2011 10:42 AM (GMT 0)
Since last summer, I've been trying to figure out if I have Lyme disease or not. Last fall, I tested negative on the Elisa test. And then, last week, I was told that I tested negative on the Western Blot. The doctor who did the Western Blot did so reluctantly and said that she had never ordered the test before for anyone. I got a call from her office saying the test was negative. They gave me no specific information. Do all Western Blot lab reports to doctors include information on how the person tested on the different bands or does the doctor have to request that information? I'm wondering if I ask for a copy of my test if I will be able to see how I scored on each band.
I started feeling ill late last June with abdominal pain, nausea, fatigue, lightheadedness and weakness. Three weeks after I started feeling ill, I broke out in a rash. I had 3 lesions on my back that looked like classic Lyme disease. I had one lesion on my stomach that did not look like classic Lyme disease. I got two doctors' opinions. One said the rash was contact dermatitis. The other said she had no idea what caused the rash, but it probably wasn't anything serious. (I live in Tennessee where doctors almost never see or treat Lyme disease.) It wasn't until after the rash had faded that I figured out through online research that my symptoms and rash could be Lyme.
I took a picture of the rash on my stomach because it was so unusual. In retrospect, I wish I had taken a picture of the rash on my back because that picture now would be more convincing to doctors that I may have contracted Lyme disease.
I have continued to have the same symptoms which began last summer, so I'm still searching for an answer for what might be causing them. Should I keep pursuing the idea that I might have Lyme disease even after the negative testing? I'd appreciate some of your opinions. Thanks so much!