Lyme Arthritis and Deer Tick Bacteria | Arthritis Information

 

Deer Tick Bacteria DNA In Joint Fluid Not Reliable Marker Of Active Lyme Arthritis

Borrelia burgdorferi DNA-the spirochetal bacteria transmitted by deer ticks-in joint fluid may confirm the diagnosis of Lyme arthritis, but is not a reliable indicator for active joint infection in patients whose arthritis persists after antibiotic therapy. Findings of this study are published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).

Lyme disease is caused by the B. burgdorferi bacteria, which is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected blacklegged tick, commonly known as the deer tick. The characteristic erythema migrans skin rash-resembling a bull's-eye mark-is often the first sign of infection, along with symptoms such as headache, fever, and fatigue. Surveillance data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report more than 30,000 new cases of Lyme disease each summer in the U.S., with 93% of cases occurring in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. If left untreated, roughly 60% of patients will develop Lyme arthritis, which commonly affects the knee.

"Currently, the primary use for PCR testing in Lyme disease is to establish if active infection remains in patients with persistent arthritis following antibiotic therapy," said Allen Steere, M.D., Director of Clinical Research, Rheumatology Unit, at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston. "Our study goal was to determine the B. burgdorferi burden and viability in skin and joints of patients with Lyme disease." Researchers used PCR techniques to detect the deer tick bacteria DNA in skin samples of 90 patients with confirmed Lyme disease and in joint fluid or synovial tissue samples from 63 patients with Lyme arthritis, 23 who were responsive to antibiotics and 40 with antibiotic-refractory arthritis. In addition, both bacterial DNA and RNA were searched for in a subgroup of these patients. In most patients, erythema migrans skin lesions, an early disease manifestation, yielded positive culture and PCR results for the Lyme disease agent. Similarly, the majority of pre-treatment synovial fluid samples in patients with Lyme arthritis, a late disease manifestation, had positive PCR results for B. burgdorferi DNA. Patients with Lyme arthritis were treated with oral antibiotics for one or two months, and in those for whom the arthritis did not resolve, IV antibiotics were administered for an additional month. If they had persistent arthritis despite three months of antibiotics, patients were treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Lynn, Have you ever seen " Under Our Skin "  ??? Great  movie on LymeJust wondering...for those of you who are seronegative, did your doctor test you for Lyme disease? I was seronegative for several years before turning positive, but Lyme disease was never mentioned or tested for. Seems like I've read that a lot of you have been tested for it, and I'm wondering if I should be, or should have been? BTW...my arthritis initially started in the knees, which according to this article is typical for Lyme disease. Yep, Lyme was in the initial bloodwork done at my first rheumatologist visit. Mine was negative.  Never had problems in my knees, either, FWIW.
JasmineRain2011-05-23 18:57:55Remember that there is NO test for Lyme. Only a test to see if your body has produced an antibody against it. You can have Lyme and not have a positive test. Also there are more then one type of test 
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