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Posted 12/2/2018 9:56 AM (GMT -5)
Hi all, I think I have Lyme disease, I have been symptomatic since March with:

- crushing fatigue
- joint pain
- muscle stiffness
- anxiety
- insomnia

I recently got my Western Blot done with Stonybrook labs and my Dr. said it was a positive test and wants to treat. But it seems like a "weak positive" to me and I wanted a second opinion from more experienced folks. I'm going to paste the image here. Could you take a look and let me know what you think of these results? Thanks!

My Lyme serology, serum was: non reactive (0.043, reactive would be 0.114 or above)

My Lyme WB, serum was:

IGM result: Indeterminate on band 41 * [NEG]
IGM nonspecific bands were also detected: 31, 58, 93

Lyme WB IGG result: Indeterminate on band 41 * [NEG]
IGG nonspecific bands were also detected: 64

Quest Diagnostics testing for coinfections (E. Chaffensis, B. Microti, B. Henselae, B. Quintana) were negative. Mycoplasma was positive.

Please help before I launch into years of Lyme treatment! Thanks!
Posted 12/2/2018 10:28 AM (GMT -5)
Welcome to the forum LaurenLyme! According to Dr Horowitz's lyme bingo band 31 is highly specific for lyme: https://scontent.fphx1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/1511672_818342531524591_924613633_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_ht=scontent.fphx1-2.fna&oh=5fe303d69b8751a960bdc843219b4874&oe=5c9d30fe

Given your multi-systemic symptoms (joint and neuro-involvement) coupled with test results I'd think it makes sense to pursue lyme.

What kind of lyme treatments are you thinking of pursuing? Treatment doesn't take years for everyone, it can take a bit of trial and error to see what works. And sometimes strategic treatment rotations when a patient plateaus or has issues with a therapy. I'm a believer in starting low and slow with treatment, some patients can have strong reactions (herx) to therapy, especially when they are just starting out.

Are you doing any detoxing? that can sometimes help with symptom relief. This site gives some ideas: https://www.tiredoflyme.com/detox-methods.html. A lot of patients see some relief by implementing various combos of detox.

Some good resources on lyme/coinfections include Dr Richard Horowitz's books on these illnesses (more allopathic), and Stephen Buhner's website and books on these infections (herbal-based treatment approaches). Both books have good fundamental info on the infections themselves.
Posted 12/2/2018 10:39 AM (GMT -5)
Thank you so much for the prompt response. I guess I don't quite understand the "nonspecific bands that were also detected." What does nonspecific mean? How strongly were they detected? And it gives me pause that both my IGG and IGM band of 41 was only rated * [NEG] and not like, +, ++, etc... any insight?

I am planning on using bee venom therapy which is a 2-3 yr. protocol. But I want to be sure I have Lyme before starting. I thought my dr. offered Igenex but I was mistaken, and I can't afford it out of pocket sad
Posted 12/2/2018 11:10 AM (GMT -5)
Ah gotcha. Nonspecific means that the protein is not specific to borrelia and could be cross-reacting with other pathogens or bacteria. I think the indeterminate on band 41 means it's sort of an in-betweener. Some docs take it as a positive result, personally I don't really know for sure so hopefully someone else can offer more insights.

This link includes some help with interpreting the bands: http://lymetwistontherocks.blogspot.com/2011/01/western-blots-what-do-all-of-those-darn.html

That's cool about BVT. I would think that a further confirmation could come via how you respond to BVT. Effective therapeutics often cause a flare in original symptoms known as a herx, can be an indirect way of confirming that underlying pathogen is present and causing symptoms.

Post Edited (sebreg) : 12/2/2018 9:13:19 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 12/2/2018 1:07 PM (GMT -5)

LaurenLyme said...
Hi all, I think I have Lyme disease, I have been symptomatic since March with:

- crushing fatigue
- joint pain
- muscle stiffness
- anxiety
- insomnia

I recently got my Western Blot done with Stonybrook labs and my Dr. said it was a positive test and wants to treat. But it seems like a "weak positive" to me and I wanted a second opinion from more experienced folks. I'm going to paste the image here. Could you take a look and let me know what you think of these results? Thanks!

My Lyme serology, serum was: non reactive (0.043, reactive would be 0.114 or above)

My Lyme WB, serum was:

IGM result: Indeterminate on band 41 * [NEG]
IGM nonspecific bands were also detected: 31, 58, 93

Lyme WB IGG result: Indeterminate on band 41 * [NEG]
IGG nonspecific bands were also detected: 64

Quest Diagnostics testing for coinfections (E. Chaffensis, B. Microti, B. Henselae, B. Quintana) were negative. Mycoplasma was positive.

Please help before I launch into years of Lyme treatment! Thanks!

Welcome to our community!

Both bands 31 and 93 are lyme.
Plus you are positive for Mycoplasma which is a coinfection of Lyme.
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