Re: False Positive Lyme Test

[Guest guest]

I'm confused...........wouldn't the positive test results confirm

Lyme?...........or are you saying, the person had positive lyme

tests.........and it turned out they had something else? and was cured by a

different treatment other than abx........therefore the tests were falsely

positive??.........Never heard of this, but would be interesting to hear if

this has happened......and then why it happened.......

Connie nwnj

Leave no stone unturned.......and ask questions!

[Guest guest]

> I'm confused........=

....wouldn't the positive test results confirm> Lyme?...........or are you sa=

ying, the person had positive lyme> tests.........and it turned out they ha=

d something else? and wascured by a> different treatment other than abx....=

.....therefore the tests werefalsely> positive??.........Never heard of this,=

but would be interesting tohear if> this has happened......and then why it =

happened.......> Connie nwnj> > Leave no stone unturned.......and ask questi=

ons!To conniek:The following abstracts explain " falsepositive " lyme test. =

PG 3c. Doctors on Lyme disease and false positive test resul=

ts. ***************************************************** =

as of 28 October 1998 American Family Physician Recognition a=

nd Management of Lyme Disease MARY E. VERDON, M.D. Hunterdon Medical Ce=

nter Family Practice Residency Hunterdon Medical Center, Flemington, Ne=

w Jersey LEONARD H. SIGAL, M.D. University of Medicine and Dentistry of=

New Jersey­Wood Medical School New Brunswick, New Jersey . . =

.. Serum samples from persons with disseminated or late-stage Lymedisease alm=

ost always have a strong IgG response to B. burgdorferiantigens.23 In the no=

rmal population, 3 to 5 percent of persons willtest positive by ELISA or IFA=

, merely because the statistics ofdefining a " normal range " for the assay de=

fines that 3 to 5 percentof the population will fall outside the " normal " ra=

nge.False-positive serologic results can occur in patients with syphilis,pin=

ta, yaws, bejel and leptospirosis, autoimmune disorders such asjuvenile rheu=

matoid arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and systemiclupus erythematosus and i=

n infectious disorders (mononucleosis,subacute bacterial endocarditis and ma=

laria). Thus, for a number ofreasons, a positive test does not guarantee tha=

t a person has Lymedisease.24 . . . 23.Dressler F, Whalen JA, Reinhardt BN, =

Steere AC. Western blottingin the serodiagnosis of Lyme disease. J Infect Di=

s 1993;167:392-400. 24.Sigal LH. Persisting complaints attributed to chronic=

Lymedisease: possible mechanisms and implications for management. Am JMed 1=

994;96:365-74. Recognition and Management of Lyme Disease / August 1997, =

AFPhttp://www.aafp.org/afp/970800ap/lymedis.html ----- THE HEALTH GAZETTE, T=

allahassee, Florida Karl Hempel, M.D. Lyme Disease The screening blood test =

that is used for Lyme disease has a veryhigh false positive rate. This makes=

it extremely important to do aconfirmatory test called the Western blot met=

hod. In the past, theWestern blot has not been done so there are numerous pe=

ople that areincorrectly diagnosed as having Lyme disease. In the past 10 mo=

nths,Tallahassee Memorial Regional Medical Center has been doing theWestern =

blot test on all screening tests that are positive for Lymedisease. About 10=

to 15% of all screening tests for Lyme disease comeback positive. When the =

Western blot test was performed on the sameblood, all of the tests were nega=

tive. This makes it very importantto request the Western blot if you have a =

positive screening test.Most commercial labs will not perform the Western bl=

ot unless it isspecifically asked for. It is also important to realize that =

theblood test for Lyme disease may take several weeks or months tobecome pos=

itive after infection. Therefore you may have the typicalrash and symptoms o=

f Lyme disease, but the blood test will still benegative. In this case most =

physicians will go ahead and treat withantibiotics. See complete document=

at: Lyme Disease http://www.freenet.tlh.fl.us/HealthGazette/lyme.html =

--------------- See: Lyme disease and false negative or false positive blood=

test resultshttp://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/6772/false-neg-pos-inde=

x.html --------------- Prepared by Art Doherty Lompoc, California doherty@ut=

ech.net

[Guest guest]

I found the article very informative..........but it still doesn't

explain.......what you are talking about.

You said there was still a dx of lyme disease......was everything else

looked at?? Were other diseases investigated and tested for? Were those

tests negative?....... If they were, than would not the tests be positive

for Lyme?........and since everything else was excluded from the

dx.........how would it still be a false positive??.........

Still not sure what you are looking for..........people with another disease

that comes up falsely positive for lyme disease?.........and then was

incorrectly treated with abx?..........didn't get better............and

proved the test was a false positive?

I can't see how you can say a test is falsely positive, unless, something

else is found.......that would trigger the test to be false.....I can

however see someone having lyme and another disease........and testing

Positive for Lyme.......but I guess that would be a positive lyme

test...........not a false positive...........

Maybe I'm missing out on what you are looking for..

Connie nwnj

Leave no stone unturned.......and ask questions!

[Guest guest]

> I found the article very

informative..........but it still doesn't> explain.......what you are talking

about.> > You said there was still a dx of lyme disease......was everythingelse>

looked at?? Were other diseases investigated and tested for? Werethose> tests

negative?....... If they were, than would not the tests bepositive> for

Lyme?........and since everything else was excluded from the> dx.........how

would it still be a false positive??.........> > Still not sure what you are

looking for..........people withanother disease> that comes up falsely positive

for lyme disease?.........and thenwas> incorrectly treated with

abx?..........didn't getbetter............and> proved the test was a false

positive?> > I can't see how you can say a test is falsely positive,

unless,something> else is found.......that would trigger the test to be

false.....Ican> however see someone having lyme and another

disease........andtesting> Positive for Lyme.......but I guess that would be a

positive lyme> test...........not a false positive...........> Maybe I'm missing

out on what you are looking for..> Connie nwnj> > Leave no stone

unturned.......and ask questions!To conniek:My doc says I do not have LD because

I was ELISA positve and only two bands came up positive on the Western Blot.My

question is has anyone had the same test results,but did their doctor make a

diagnosis of LD based solely on the patient's symptoms?

[Guest guest]

--Philip,

>>>>>I was ELISA positve and only two bands came up positive on

the Western

Blot.My question is has anyone had the same test results,but did

their doctor

make a diagnosis of LD based solely on the patient's symptoms?

I had just two bands on the WB and 4 positives on the Luat

from Igenex. And I was diagnoised with Lyme from a Clinical

perspective. I have had severe herxes since I started on Ceftin,,have

gone to the ER 4 times out of the 5 months I have been treated. I a

mad as hell at Dr. H.

Yesterday I saw him and told him I am having a allergic reaction to

this Ceftin,,I have had to get on combievent in the last two months

to breathe,, and last Saturday woke up at 5:30 unable to breathe.

Went to the funky hospital he practices out of( mold and slime on the

walls like a Mash unit but a Mash unit would be cleaner) the name of

it is Bayou City Medical Center in Houston,, they could not find out

why I could not breathe and when I got home I called him. He said it

was my limbic area not working similar to Mediated Hypotention. I

also have severe sleep apnea and never had that in my life.

Yesterday I went to see him and told him I thought the Ceftin was

causing me theses terrible breathing problems. He refused to change

my medicene. I am beginning to think I am a money cow and this

disease whatever I have, is the lyme disease diagnois flavor of the

year? I am beginning to doubt this guy big time. Out of the blue he

got pissy with me and wanted to know if I was discontining my

treatment,saying that at this time most lyme patients stop treatment

at this stage,,well, I hadnt even thought of quitting but now I am

having serve doubts about his guy. I mean he seems to have only

tunnel vision and not willingly ready to explore other bacterias that

give fasle positive readings for lyme.

He has never used any other lab work to rule out any other bacterial

infection. BTW all bacteria can cause a herx. I just learned that.

Gosh I am so tired of being sick all the damn time. In the beginning

of the treatment he was so kind and nice,,now he has the Jekykl and

Hyde personality.

He also remarked I had so much anxiety,, I said " hell yes I have

anxiety,,if you couldnt breathe wouldnt you? Wouldnt you have anxiety

if you never knew what the next herx will bring,,so far I have had

Chest pain herxes,pneumonia herxes, asthma herxes, migraine

herxes.....all ended me in the ER and each time the Dr`s are

dumbfounded in the ER not knowing anything.

I am going for a second opinion to rule out other bacterias since he

wont.

Hope this helps.

in hot humid Tejas...........

((hugs))

Samm

- In @y..., " Philip Guy " <badway2@y...> wrote:

> > I found the

article very informative..........but it still doesn't>

explain.......what you are talking about.> > You said there was still

a dx of lyme disease......was everythingelse> looked at?? Were other

diseases investigated and tested for? Werethose> tests

negative?....... If they were, than would not the tests bepositive>

for Lyme?........and since everything else was excluded from the>

dx.........how would it still be a false positive??.........> > Still

not sure what you are looking for..........people withanother

disease> that comes up falsely positive for lyme disease?.........and

thenwas> incorrectly treated with abx?..........didn't

getbetter............and> proved the test was a false positive?> > I

can't see how you can say a test is falsely positive,

unless,something> else is found.......that would trigger the test to

be false.....Ican> however see someone having lyme and another

disease........andtesting> Positive for Lyme.......but I guess that

would be a positive lyme> test...........not a false

positive...........> Maybe I'm missing out on what you are looking

for..> Connie nwnj> > Leave no stone unturned.......and ask questions!

To conniek:My doc says I do not have LD because I was ELISA positve

and only two bands came up positive on the Western Blot.My question

is has anyone had the same test results,but did their doctor make a

diagnosis of LD based solely on the patient's symptoms?

[Guest guest]

Hi!

I think what your doc is saying is that the ELISA is false positive because the

western blot result may not meet the CDC criteria for a positive blot. (IgM 2out

of 3 bands; IgG 5 out of 10 bands). This gets more complicated however.

Depending on the clinical story and which bands are positive and what the rest

of your evaluation is like, meeting the CDC's criter ia does not = having Lyme

Disease any more than NOT meeting the CDC criteria means that you do Not have

Lyme Disease. Lyme is diagnosed " clinically " and then can be supported by lab

evidence. It matters which lab does the testing and whether they test for and

report ALL of the protein bands(including 31 and 34kDa bands which are outer

surface protein A and B, so specific that they have been the basis of the

vaccine research and development, but are NOT included in the CDC criteria for

Wblot interpretation).

So, BOTTOM LINE... the tests cannot establish whether you do or don't have Lyme

, they can lend support or not.

Hope that helps.

Bea

>

[Guest guest]

Connie,

I'm lost.

Sheryl

Re: [ ] False Positive Lyme Test

> I'm confused...........wouldn't the positive test results confirm

> Lyme?...........or are you saying, the person had positive lyme

> tests.........and it turned out they had something else? and was cured by a

> different treatment other than abx........therefore the tests were falsely

> positive??.........Never heard of this, but would be interesting to hear if

> this has happened......and then why it happened.......

> Connie nwnj

>

> Leave no stone unturned.......and ask questions!

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

,

I don't know if it counts but I have two possitive tests and a false negative.

My LLMD says that the one canme back negative because I was on antibiotics and

in the hospital being treated for encephalitas.

Sheryl

[ ] False Positive Lyme Test

> Has anyone tested false positive(e.g.,positive ELISA and two postive

WesternBlot bands),and was diagnosed with LDdespite the test results?

PG

>

>

>

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