Posted by Jimmyboy on May 14, 2009, at 20:10:10
In reply to mono/allergies/celiac/Lyme; constant fatigue - son, posted by garnet71 on May 14, 2009, at 18:16:56
FYI , A very knowledgeable fellow on Lyme gave me this info, so I will pass it on to you.
"The standard ELISA/WB tests for Lyme have srious flaws." He recommended the "Igenex western blot" test. It costs $100 each for the IgM and IgG western blot ($200 total) and it is not covered by insurance.
He went on to add... " you can improve the sensitivity of the western blot further with an "antibiotic challenge", which usually consists of taking an effective dose of doxycycline (400mg) for three weeks before taking the test. The western blot looks for antibodies to the bacteria that are not always present, because that requires exposure of the bacteria to the immune system and it is very good at remaining hidden. With antibiotics though, if borellia burgdorferi are present, some will be destroyed by the antibiotics and the resulting debris will be seen by the immune system and antibodies manufactured in response."
poster:Jimmyboy
thread:895816
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090505/msgs/895836.html