SANTA CLARA COUNTY LAB TICK LYME TEST SKIN

“Our study of California patients who were tested for tick-borne disease suggests there may be similar exposure risks for Lyme disease and RFB (33% vs. “This paper sheds light on the presence of Lyme disease and Relapsing Fever Borrelia throughout the state of California,” says Middelveen. In 2016, there were more than 46,000 insurance claims related to Lyme disease in California, although the official number of cases was much less. This poses unique challenges to clinicians unfamiliar with the disease distribution because individuals infected with RFB may present with “Lyme-like” symptoms. Until recently, RFB was thought to be limited primarily to Europe and the East Coast of the United States, but the new study shows that exposure is widespread on the West Coast as well. Tick-borne relapsing fever is caused by Relapsing Fever Borrelia (RFB), which is in the same family as Borrelia burgdorferi, the corkscrew-shaped bacteria that causes Lyme disease. The report entitled “Relapsing Fever Borrelia in California: A Pilot Serological Study” was written by microbiologist Marianne Middelveen from Calgary, Canada, together with pathologist Jyotsna Shah of IGeneX Laboratories in Palo Alto, CA, nurse practitioner Melissa Fesler and internist Raphael Stricker from Union Square Medical Associates in San Francisco, CA. Different ticks live in different parts of the country and transmit different diseases.Exposure to tick-borne relapsing fever is widespread in California, according to a study published in the prestigious International Journal of General Medicine. However, you may want to learn to identify various ticks. If you do become ill, you should not wait for tick testing results before beginning appropriate treatment. If you have been infected, you will probably develop symptoms before results of the tick test are available.You may have been unknowingly bitten by a different tick that was infected. Negative results can lead to false assurance.Positive results showing that the tick contains a disease-causing organism do not necessarily mean that you have been infected.Results of tick testing should not be used for treatment decisions. Laboratories that conduct tick testing are not required to have the high standards of quality control used by clinical diagnostic laboratories.Although some commercial groups offer testing, in general this is not recommended because:

People who have removed a tick sometimes wonder if they should have it tested for evidence of infection.

Where you most likely acquired the tick.

Tell the doctor about your recent tick bite,.

If you develop a rash or fever within several weeks of removing a tick, see your doctor:

After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.

SANTA CLARA COUNTY LAB TICK LYME TEST SKIN

If you cannot remove the mouth easily with tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. Don’t twist or jerk the tick this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. Pull upward with steady, even pressure.Use clean, fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible.There are several tick removal devices on the market, but a plain set of fine-tipped tweezers works very well. If you find a tick attached to your skin, simply remove the tick as soon as possible.

Santa clara county lab tick lyme test