Why test a tick for Lyme bacteria and other pathogens?
This is a question we receive throughout the year, especially at outreach and education events in our community. It doesn’t always make intuitive sense (after all, why wouldn’t I just have my doctor test me for Lyme?), and is sometimes actively discouraged by public health officials. Here are the reasons we at TickReport believe pathogen testing for ticks is an important step in improving health outcomes after a tick bite.
First, the criticism:
The best summary of tick testing caveats and drawbacks can be found on the CDC website accompanying their instructions for tick removal. Their reasons for discouraging tick testing are (all text drawn from the CDC site linked above):
“Positive results showing that the tick contains a disease-causing organism do not necessarily mean that you have been infected.”
“Negative results can lead to false assurance. You may have been unknowingly bitten by a different tick that was infected.”
We 100% agree with each of these statements. It’s important to remember that tick testing measures exposure risk, it does not diagnose illness in a host. We like the analogy of testing the paint or insulation in a new house; finding lead or asbestos (or radon, or any number of other hazards) in your house does not automatically translate to lead poisoning, cancer, or other illnesses for you and your family. But it does suggest some mediation steps you might want to consider and helps you to stay vigilant for symptoms of an associated illness.
The same applies to tick testing. Learning the potential risks posed by a tick bite can help you step up your repellent game and keep you checking yourself for ticks daily. Tick testing can also keep you focused on the multiple risks posed by a tick bite so you can avoid…
Lyme “tunnel vision”
Lyme disease is the natural first stop in considering risk after a tick bite. As many as half a million people contract this disease every year. But as serious as Lyme is, it’s only part of the tick risk story. Our lab has tested over 100,000 ticks from across North America plus five other continents, and 35.6% of the pathogens we find are something other than Lyme bacteria. These other diseases may appear alone or in a group, and simultaneous infections may complicate treatment. It can also be difficult to access diagnostic testing for the full range of pathogens a tick can carry, and the time needed for antibodies to build up may vary by pathogen. With tick testing through TickReport.com, we can target dozens of pathogens at a fraction of the cost of diagnostic testing. It won’t replace diagnosis by your doctor, but it may help direct the conversation to know that your TickReport results provide…
Fast, accurate data
Depending on when you find a tick and how quickly it reaches our lab, tick testing can provide exposure data in a matter of hours following a tick bite. Diagnostic testing (of blood) typically detects your body’s reaction to an infection rather than an infectious agent itself. Those antibodies may need 3-5 weeks to reach detectable levels, so it’s difficult to learn about infection until symptoms appear. Tick testing targets the DNA or RNA of the pathogen itself rather than an antibody, and is sensitive enough to detect minute quantities of pathogen material.
What should you do with your tick testing results?
Your tick test results will typically be completed within a day of arrival at our lab. The next step is to share those results with your doctor to see if they recommend observation or treatment if symptoms emerge. Transmission times vary by tick type and pathogen, so the feeding estimate in your private TickReport is another important element of estimating risk. Contact us at support@TickReport.com if you or your doctor have follow-up questions.