Once you have your tick removed it is important to understand every lab maintains their own protocols for analyzing samples. Very few labs in the US will test for Lyme Disease, although more are beginning to. Some it is important you either contact the lab personally or look at their website as how they want to receive your tick specimen. While some labs may accept live animals in a small bottle others may need you to freeze the sample overnight before sending it. It is always recommended to check with the lab of your choice and remember there are only a couple of labs to choose from. Frozen samples must not preserved in Alcohol. Most labs will not except Formalin either as this is a hazardous carcinogenic chemical that should be handled only in supervised lab conditions.
One of the latest methods and easiest is to simply buy tick kits, they run about $20 dollars for the kit and $40 – $60 to have many of the important tests such as Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, Babesia, Bartonella, Ehrlichia, Rickettsia, and I believe Anaplasma. Here is he link: TIC-Kit
- a TIC-kit is an easiest way to have your tick tested you merely follow the instructions inside the package and they include everything you will need from a small pair of tweezers (larger ones might be a better option as they tend to capture the entire organism. These kits are inexpensive and test for the most common pathogens a tick may carry. You freeze your sample in the container as per instructions and send to the lab on the package. While I have not had the need for one of these lately, my Lyme Literate Doctor carries them with her when she knows she is going to be in a tick zone. So I feel confident plugging these. Again it is TIC-Kit.
- As for the other labs. I have heard Igenix is a good lab and does fine work. Other people will say otherwise. It is your choice. They are expensive. And charge for each pathogen separately to test for all. But they can check for other organisms you may be looking for which the Tic-Kit does not cover. All ticks should be saved and sent to a qualified lab or LLND or DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) to test for pathogens. Know you will have to pay for this and are spendy. If you find a tick and you choose to use a TIC-kit it is quick and easy. Also, the information once returned to your doctor or DVM will go to the CDC so they can add the information to their database.
- Each lab may also have a different pricing structure and it can be quite costly. Most insurance companies will not pay for this service. Be sure to ask how they want to receive their specimen. This is very important. Some labs prefer life samples this a can be done easily if the tick is still alive. Place tick in a small plastic vial or zip closure bag with several blades of fresh grass to maintain humidity, and then ship immediately. Place ticks from different hosts/collection sites into separate vials or bags, marking each with proper identifying information so that each can be matched to its corresponding tick submission form. For example, you may wish to number the vials, and then include the vial number on each submission form. Finally, place each vial or bag inside another zip closure bag (i.e., double bag). Some labs work only with frozen samples from a container that was plastic others prefer tiny glass tubes. Make sure you understand what the lab uses and follow protocol so your sample is preserved to their protocols, or you have wasted your tick sample. Also see below on required information most labs will require.
- If you don’t have a kit or prefer to preserve the sample to give to your doctor, understand this is expensive and generally not covered by insurance. This does not guarantee a better or worse diagnosis either. But you will learn what pathogens were inside the tick. Often labs will charge a large fee for each pathogen you need tested. And you are responsible to pay regardless of the results.
- Your doctor should put you on antibiotic ASAP regardless of whether you know you are infected. This will benefit you while you wait to get your results back. This will also help get a head start on treatment if the tick tests is positive and for the co-infectors.
- All ticks should be saved and given to a Lyme Literate Naturopathic Doctor (LLND) or DVM to test for genus and species of the tick and what pathogens the tick carries. Or you can follow the above instructions and do it yourself.
- Don’t handle ticks without protective gloves. It is possible for infectious microbes to enter through mucous membranes or breaks in the skin. This precaution is particularly directed to people who remove ticks from pets e.g., cats and dogs, and farmers who remove ticks from their animals with unprotected fingers. Children, the elderly, and immuno-compromised persons may be at greater risk of infection and should avoid this procedure.
- Do not squeeze, crush, or puncture the body of the tick because its fluids in the saliva may contain infectious organisms –Such as hemolymph is a fluid, analogous to the blood in vertebrates, that circulates in the interior of the arthropod body remaining in direct contact with the animal’s tissues. It is composed of a fluid plasma in which hemolymph cells called hemocytes are suspended and can contain pathogens, gut contents.
- If when removing the tick you didn’t remove all the feeding components you will need to see a doctor so they can remove them.
- Ticks can be kept alive by using needle nose tweezers and place the tick, along with several blades of grass, into a small container (e.g. a clean screw-cap pill bottle or a zip-lock Freezer bag). Be sure you include all reference material as indicated below.
- Tick preservation practices found in this blog post are suitable for most labs. DO NOT preserve ticks in formalin as it is a harmful chemicals that can interfere with laboratory testing.
- Ticks may be submitted live, frozen, or preserved in ethyl or isopropyl alcohol (70% or higher alcohol concentration). Check first with the lab.
- If the tick is engorged, carefully place the dead tick and/or engorged tick inside a small container using the above method. It is imperative you follow the practices in this post for the specific lab you plan on using when sending in samples. Remember, some labs want alcohol some don’t. So know in advance where you are sending your tick before you kill your live sample in alcohol. Most labs will expect to receive a frozen sample. Not always. So double-check. Always try to use the smallest glass tubing. While some labs still use plastic, plastics have been known to alter results pertaining to DNA.
- The following information is required before processing your tick sample:
- Date of collection
- County
- State
- Geographic coordinates – hint GPS coordinates these are found on any mobile phone device or car GPS unit.
- where the tick was found (E.g., on the ground, a person, where on person, or if adhered/embedded,
- description if thetickwas damaged; and
- Include your name
- Phone number
- email address
- Name of physician or veterinarian if more information is required or to provide test results. It is always best to include as much information as possible for the researchers.
- Indicate that the results be sent to your doctor.
- Check with your State Department of Health for assistance if needed for help but often they aren’t much help, it depends on what state you live in.
- Always send your samples to reliable labs if your doctor prefers you take care of it.Igenex in California has a great reputation and samples can beandare submitted to them from all over the world. If they wont take your sample due to a high volume of samples, make sure to ask where they recommend to send yours.SameforUmass.
- www.igenex.com West Coast
- https://ag.umass.edu/services/tick-borne-disease-diagnostics East Coast
- www.igenex.com West Coast
Good luck!