Improving the yield of blood cultures for patients with early Lyme disease.
This study was designed to improve the recovery of Borrelia burgdorferi from blood. With the techniques used, B. burgdorferi could be recovered from the blood of approximately 25% of patients with early Lyme disease associated with erythema migrans. Serum was a better source of culture material than whole blood. The volume of blood cultured correlated directly with yield, particularly for patients with a single erythema migrans lesion.
Wormser
G P
GP
Department of Medicine, New York Medical College, Valhalla 10595, USA.
Nowakowski
J
J
Nadelman
R B
RB
Bittker
S
S
Cooper
D
D
Pavia
C
C
D000328:Adult; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*