Rutgers researcher leads team analyzing more exact methods to diagnose the most common tick-borne infection
Researchers have developed techniques to detect Lyme disease bacteria weeks sooner than current tests, allowing patients to start treatment earlier.
The findings appear in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. The authors include scientists from Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, Harvard University, Yale University, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, FDA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other institutions.
The new techniques can detect an active infection with the Lyme bacteria faster than the three weeks it takes for the current indirect antibody-based tests, which have been a standard since 1994. Another advantage of the new tests is that a positive result in blood indicates the infection is active and should be treated immediately, allowing quicker treatment to prevent long-term health problems. The techniques detect DNA or protein from the Lyme disease bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi.
“These direct tests are needed because you can get Lyme disease more than once, features are often nondiagnostic and the current standard FDA-approved tests cannot distinguish an active, ongoing infection from a past cured one,” said lead author Steven Schutzer, a physician-scientist at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. “The problem is worsening because Lyme disease has increased in numbers to 300,000 per year in the United States and is spreading across the country and world.”
Lyme disease signs frequently, but not always, include a red ring or bull’s eye skin rash. When there is no rash, a reliable laboratory test is needed and preferably one that indicates active disease. The only FDA-approved Lyme disease tests rely on detecting antibodies that the body’s immune system makes in response to the disease. Such a single antibody test is not an active disease indicator but rather only an exposure indicator — past or present.
“The new tests that directly detect the Lyme agent’s DNA are more exact and are not susceptible to the same false-positive results and uncertainties associated with current FDA-approved indirect tests,” said Schutzer. “It will not be surprising to see direct tests for Lyme disease join the growing list of FDA-approved direct tests for other bacterial, fungal and viral infections that include Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Candida, influenza, HIV, herpes and hepatitis, among others.”
Learn more: New Techniques Can Detect Lyme Disease Weeks Before Current Tests
The Latest on: Lyme disease
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Lyme disease” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Lyme disease
- Dog owners issued Lyme Disease and tick warning by veton May 4, 2024 at 8:11 am
But spending more time among nature means a heightened risk of tick bites, which can, in some cases, result in Lyme disease. Dr Hannah Godfrey, vet at Petsure, warned: “You can recognise a tick by ...
- Spring is time to combat Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseaseson May 4, 2024 at 7:00 am
While ticks are most active in spring and summer, they can be found during any time of the year when the temperature is above freezing ...
- Maryland launches tickborne disease prevention campaign amidst increasing Lyme caseson May 4, 2024 at 5:24 am
Maryland Department of Health urges Marylanders to guard against tickborne diseasesBaltimore, MD – To recognize May as Tickborne Diseas ...
- The Cautionary Parable of the Bacteria that Cause Lyme Diseaseon May 4, 2024 at 4:03 am
Once the parasite enters our bodies, it reproduces and leads to Lyme disease. For most, the impacts of the infection are minimal and short term, but for some, the effects can be life-altering — all ...
- Lyme disease in dogs: Symptoms to look out for and how to prevent iton May 4, 2024 at 1:45 am
Dog owners all over the UK are being urged to watch out for any symptoms of Lyme Disease, which can make pets chronically unwell if it's not treated in time. Health experts at the UKHSA have warned ...
- Illinois Health Officials Launch Lyme Disease Awareness Campaign with "Fight the Bite" Mantraon May 3, 2024 at 5:29 pm
The IDPH launches Lyme Disease awareness campaign, stressing prevention and early action against tick-borne illnesses.
- Lyme disease: It only takes one biteon May 3, 2024 at 10:30 am
I'm a strong, well-trained former pro athlete. How could an opponent as tiny as a tick defeat me? Because Lyme disease is real. I've battled it for decades. The pernicious, insidious disease — hard to ...
- Mom’s memory loss and tingling were dismissed by 14 doctors. It was neurologic Lyme diseaseon May 3, 2024 at 6:54 am
Kirsten Stein panicked when she couldn't find her son. She forgot she had just dropped him off at school. Her new symptoms were a sign of Lyme disease.
- What It’s Like to Live With Neurologic Lyme Disease: A Patient Perspectiveon April 30, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Credit: Getty Images Diagnosing patients with neurologic Lyme disease can take upwards of 2 years, which Maria Arini Lopez discovered first-hand in the spring of 2021. Lyme Disease Awareness Month ...
- Is Lyme disease curable? Here's what you should know about tick bites and symptoms.on April 30, 2024 at 4:37 am
For most people, Lyme disease is cured with 2-4 weeks worth of antibiotics. However, some people may have lingering damage and symptoms.
via Bing News