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
- Expert warns of Lyme disease risk in South Georgiaon May 1, 2024 at 4:17 pm
May 1—TIFTON — As the weather warms and more people venture outside, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College professor Tony Matthews cautions that Lyme disease remains a concern for those exploring ...
- Map Reveals 32 States Where Dog Owners Warned of Common Tick-Borne Diseaseon May 1, 2024 at 9:23 am
Lyme disease is spread through the bites of ticks infected with the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria. According to PetMD, between 1.4 percent and 13.3 percent of dogs in the U.S. contract the disease.
- HSE issues advice to remove ticks as threat of summer Lyme disease riseson May 1, 2024 at 5:39 am
A HSE consultant is advising people to be aware of ticks and how to remove them in order to prevent Lyme disease this summer. Marking Tick Awareness Day on Wednesday, 1 May, the HSE's Health ...
- What is Lyme disease? Symptoms and when to see a doctoron May 1, 2024 at 4:20 am
You can find out more about the symptoms of Lyme disease via the NHS website. The NHS says you should see a GP if you’ve been bitten by a tick or if, in the last 3 months, you’ve visited an area where ...
- Abell Pest Control Highlights Growing Tick Activity Across Canada, Stresses Importance of Lyme Disease Awarenesson May 1, 2024 at 3:47 am
Toronto, Ontario, May 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month, and Abell Pest Control wants to remind everyone of the importance of understanding and preventing this common ...
- 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.
- Dogs Can Get Lyme Disease, Tooon April 29, 2024 at 3:42 am
Symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs can include fever, painful or swollen joints, swollen lymph nodes, lethargy, loss of appetite and increased thirst and urination. If left untreated, the disease can ...
- As ticks spread, the US is getting smart about reporting infections and seeing the true extent of Lyme diseaseon April 28, 2024 at 3:43 pm
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — the federal agency that monitors diseases and establishes guidelines to protect human health — published a paper in February that shows cases of Lyme ...
- How Is Lyme Disease Treated?on April 27, 2024 at 10:00 am
Lyme disease is a bacterial illness spread by deer ticks. Antibiotics are the primary Lyme disease treatment, but home remedies can help.
via Bing News