Lyme Disease Test

What To Think About

• It may be difficult to tell if you have Lyme disease. False-positive and false-negative Lyme disease test results are common. Many people do not make antibodies to Lyme disease bacteria for up to 8 weeks after being infected.
• When an ELISA test is positive, a Western blot test is usually done to confirm the diagnosis of Lyme disease.
• Doctors often do not rely on test results alone when recommending treatment for a person who may have Lyme disease. Treatment is often based on a person's symptoms, the time of year, having a tick bite, and other risk factors for Lyme disease.
• Finding antibodies to the bacteria that cause Lyme disease does not always mean that an active Lyme disease infection is causing your symptoms. It only means that you were infected at one time.

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Author:	Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS	Last Updated: September 3, 2008
Medical Review:	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Christine Hahn, MD - Epidemiology
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