Lyme Disease Diagnosis.

Lyme Disease Diagnosis.
Lyme disease is a bacterial disease. This disease is known to be spread by ticks when the patient is bitten on the skin, and consequently the bacterium infects the body of the victim bitten by the tick. This disease is not contagious from one infected person to another, and can only be transmitted through a tick bite.

In Lyme disease, diagnosis can be done by simple observation of the skin for starters. The common indicators include abnormalities in the skin, joints and the nervous system. Doctors can sometimes be able to diagnose this disease by simply identifying the typical rush on a patient. This is made possible in cases where the patient has been to a region in which the disease is commonly reported.

In Lyme disease diagnosis, the doctor usually looks into the patient's history in addition to conducting a physical examination. The history of the patient is specifically with particular regard to the places that the patient has been to in the recent past. This is commonly the case with Lyme disease diagnosis at the early stages.

In later stages, however, an effective Lyme disease diagnosis would require blood testing for antibodies to the Lyme bacteria. The antibodies are produced by the body to fight against the Lyme bacteria, and the antibodies are often the evidence of exposure by the patient to the Lyme bacteria.

However, it is important to note that antibodies could give false indication of a disease, including in Lyme disease diagnosis. This is because antibodies can remain in the body system for years even after the disease as been cured. This is known as a false positive test. A false positive test is dangerous in that it can lead to confusion rather than solutions to an existing problem. As a result, the most reliable test used to confirm presence of the infection in Lyme disease diagnosis is known as the Western Blot assay antibody test. Research is still underway for more tests methods.

In general however, blood testing by doctors and other medical professionals seeking to conduct Lyme disease diagnosis is helpful in patients who exhibit symptoms compatible with Lyme disease, and have a history of exposure to tick bites at least a few weeks before. The testing is also useful for those patients who have unexplained heart disorders, joint problems or nervous system complications, which are typical of Lyme diseases