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which tests to do for LYME BARTONELLA and MYCOPLASMA


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Hi,

Since there is a lot of posts about LYME recently, I want to test my kids for LYME< BARTONELLA and MYCO.

Could someone who has done them tell me whats tests to do and which labs do them? For mycoplasma..what is the test everyone is talking about and can that be done at regular lab like quest or labcorp.

I have an appointment coming up with my DAN doctor and would like to take as much information as possible to discuss.

thanks,

madhu.

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My DAN doc tested for mycoplasma pneumoniae (IGM and IGG) through LabCorp. We used IgeneX for the borrelia (lyme) and bartonella tests. I believe Clongen is another good lab and possibly Medical Diagnostics (not positive). I'd recommend the western blot tests (IGM and IGG). Just be sure the lab reports bands 31 and 34 on the western blot (some don't), as these are important indicators. You can actually order the test kit from IgeneX and they will mail it to your house free of charge. You can then take it with you to the doc's office and have him/her sign the test order paperwork. They drew the blood at my doc's office, then gave it back to us in the test kit to drop off at FedEx. (They did offer to ship it out for us from their office, but said it wouldn't go out until the next day, so we chose to do it ourselves.)

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I'm wondering out loud here but can you actually ask a local lab to report the bands 31 & 34 or are labs governed by "rules" that they cannot deviate from? I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask.

 

Has anyone had any luck with having insurance pay for the IgeneX labwork?

 

My DAN doc tested for mycoplasma pneumoniae (IGM and IGG) through LabCorp. We used IgeneX for the borrelia (lyme) and bartonella tests. I believe Clongen is another good lab and possibly Medical Diagnostics (not positive). I'd recommend the western blot tests (IGM and IGG). Just be sure the lab reports bands 31 and 34 on the western blot (some don't), as these are important indicators. You can actually order the test kit from IgeneX and they will mail it to your house free of charge. You can then take it with you to the doc's office and have him/her sign the test order paperwork. They drew the blood at my doc's office, then gave it back to us in the test kit to drop off at FedEx. (They did offer to ship it out for us from their office, but said it wouldn't go out until the next day, so we chose to do it ourselves.)
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I think I read somewhere that you can ask the labs (that don't routinely report those bands) to do so. I'm not positive though. PacificMama or Lyme Mom might know. I'm just not sure that those labs will do as well at analyzing the blood sample. IgeneX specializes in testing for tick-borne diseases so they see it all the time and know exactly what to look for.

 

I think it depends on your insurance whether testing through IgeneX would be paid for. If you have a PPO... maybe (though you'll likely have to pay out of pocket then submit a claim for reimbursement.) I have an HMO and they won't cover anything 'out of network', so we had to pay out of pocket.

 

I'm wondering out loud here but can you actually ask a local lab to report the bands 31 & 34 or are labs governed by "rules" that they cannot deviate from? I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask.

 

Has anyone had any luck with having insurance pay for the IgeneX labwork?

 

My DAN doc tested for mycoplasma pneumoniae (IGM and IGG) through LabCorp. We used IgeneX for the borrelia (lyme) and bartonella tests. I believe Clongen is another good lab and possibly Medical Diagnostics (not positive). I'd recommend the western blot tests (IGM and IGG). Just be sure the lab reports bands 31 and 34 on the western blot (some don't), as these are important indicators. You can actually order the test kit from IgeneX and they will mail it to your house free of charge. You can then take it with you to the doc's office and have him/her sign the test order paperwork. They drew the blood at my doc's office, then gave it back to us in the test kit to drop off at FedEx. (They did offer to ship it out for us from their office, but said it wouldn't go out until the next day, so we chose to do it ourselves.)

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I think I read somewhere that you can ask the labs (that don't routinely report those bands) to do so. I'm not positive though. PacificMama or Lyme Mom might know. I'm just not sure that those labs will do as well at analyzing the blood sample. IgeneX specializes in testing for tick-borne diseases so they see it all the time and know exactly what to look for.

 

I think it depends on your insurance whether testing through IgeneX would be paid for. If you have a PPO... maybe (though you'll likely have to pay out of pocket then submit a claim for reimbursement.) I have an HMO and they won't cover anything 'out of network', so we had to pay out of pocket.

 

I'm wondering out loud here but can you actually ask a local lab to report the bands 31 & 34 or are labs governed by "rules" that they cannot deviate from? I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask.

 

Has anyone had any luck with having insurance pay for the IgeneX labwork?

 

My DAN doc tested for mycoplasma pneumoniae (IGM and IGG) through LabCorp. We used IgeneX for the borrelia (lyme) and bartonella tests. I believe Clongen is another good lab and possibly Medical Diagnostics (not positive). I'd recommend the western blot tests (IGM and IGG). Just be sure the lab reports bands 31 and 34 on the western blot (some don't), as these are important indicators. You can actually order the test kit from IgeneX and they will mail it to your house free of charge. You can then take it with you to the doc's office and have him/her sign the test order paperwork. They drew the blood at my doc's office, then gave it back to us in the test kit to drop off at FedEx. (They did offer to ship it out for us from their office, but said it wouldn't go out until the next day, so we chose to do it ourselves.)

I have never heard of asking the labs to report bands 31 and 34. I do not think that any lab but Igenex or Clongen tests for 31 or 34. The lyme doctors prefer to use the Igenex and Clongen lyme tests. If you happen to get a positive result from a lesser lab, then you are very positive b/c they are not very sensitive.

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This has somewhat been covered here, but I’ll add the instructions for getting lyme testing done through the main tick-borne diseases labs that most of the better lyme docs use. One of the primary differences in these labs is that their Western Blot tests do test for bands 31 and 34 in addition to the other bands. 31 and 34 are specific only to lyme, but most labs do not test for them (long story re crazy CDC requirements). However, I think it might be possible to ask a lab to include 31 and 34 – I have heard this. But I would recommend if at all possible to use one of the following labs, as they are tick-borne specialists and do much more sensitive testing.

 

These are the typical tests my daughter has had. Remember, there are different strains of vector-borne diseases in different parts of the country. So this may affect which tests a (knowledgeable!) doctor would determine to run. There are many options!

 

Igenex: www.igenex.com

Western Blots for Lyme IGM, and Lyme IGG.

To keep costs lower, Igenex does not handle insurance. So you must pay in advance, and you can submit for reimbursement yourself. I think we end paying about $300 (?) for these 2 tests.

They will send you a kit with instructions to have your blood drawn and sent back to them. You must have doctor’s signature on your order form. (if you are using an out of state doc, they can print the order form off the web site and send it to you with their signature and test indications. The lab will send you the kit). Results are reported to your doctor – takes almost 3 weeks.

 

Clongen: www.clongen.com

PCR Amplification tests for Borrelia (lyme), Babesia microti, and Barnonella hensalae.

*will bill insurance - *will send kit

 

MDL: www.mdlab.com

Lyme (b. burgdorderi) DNA by real-time PCR; Bartonella henselae by Qualitative PCR; Mycoplasma Fermentens by Qualitative PCR; Babesia microti by real-time PCR; Ehrilichia chaffeensis (HME) & Anaplasma phagocytophilia (HGE) by real-time PCR; Babesia microti IGG by Elisa; Lyme (b. burgdorferi) DNA by real-time PCR

*will bill insurance - *will send kit

 

Quest: http://www.questdiagnostics.com/

Health Profile 8 (plus other occasional misc. tests).

*will bill insurance

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