Help with Igenex results !

Hi bellabee123 -

Thanks for posting your results.

I am Was this an IGeneX Western Blot?

Band 41 can "support" a Lyme diagnosis but can also be a cross-reaction for the presence of other microbes (dental bacteria, for one).

However, according to many experts band 39 is a Lyme-specific band, which means that few other microbes could cause this reaction.

The reason your test likely indicates "negative" is that your results don't qualify as "positive" for the CDC's surveillance reporting data. The CDC tracks the geographical spread of the disease so for entomological reasons, the reporting criteria is very strict since it's looking for a specific manifestation (strain) of the disease, not looking for all of the possible manifestations of the disease.

The CDC requires that a positive result most include reactions to 5 specific IgG bands and two specific IgM bands. Not qualifying for a CDC-positive does not mean you are not positive--you simply didn't qualify for that particular strain. Having a positive reaction to any Lyme-specific band suggests the Borrelia burgdorferi or Bb "Lyme" microbe is present and your immune system is reaction to parts of its DNA.

The other primary reason the current Lyme testing is that the Bb microbe has the capability to evade and/or disable a normal immune response. So, often, the sickest people have the worst responses to the test and simply cannot produce enough antibodies to qualify as a positive test result.

Due to these issues with the testing, the CDC recommends that the tests should not be used alone to diagnose Lyme and that MDs should clinically diagnose considering the patient's exposure AND SYMPTOMS:

"Surveillance case definitions establish uniform criteria for disease reporting and should not be used as the sole criteria for establishing clinical diagnoses, determining the standard of care necessary for a particular patient, setting guidelines for quality assurance, or providing standards for reimbursement."
www.cdc.gov/lyme/stats/survfaq.html

Here is really good info on testing:
www.betterhealthguy.com/lyme/testing

If you haven't already please read the "New to Lyme?" thread at the top of the page - has invaluable info to help you take your next steps.

Also - have you tried looking for a Lyme specialist yet? You can email one of the mods for suggestions near you or post a new thread with the title "Looking for an LLMD in _______" and indicate your area or the nearest metro area and get suggestions that way.

Hope this is helpful -

-p