Babesiosis can not be determined by BLOT testing as done by our "friends" at Igenex. Banding only show s the presence of antibodies. While for some forms of Bacteria this is enough for a diagnoses, with Babesiosis, its a different thing entirely. Babesiosis is a parasite that is only active when found through microscopic examination (there are not a lot of labs certified to do so) and actually living inside RBCs
Babesiosis is ONLY transmitted by the Ixodes scapularis tick in nymph form. However you can develop antibodies by eating hamburger......It lives in cattle. Lyme does not come from the Ixodes scapularis nor is it carried by it.
What I am saying is that it is NOT a coinfection of Lyme except in the minds of a few unscrupulous LLMD and other "lyme practitioners." If you have it, it MUST be confirmed by a blood smear. The news is that it is almost NEVER symptomatic, and the symptoms it has when it is are nothing like lyme. Rather it is marked by nonspecific flu-like symptoms, such as fever, chills, sweats, headache, body aches, loss of appetite, nausea, or fatigue.that develops into, a special type of anemia hemolytic anemia. Because it is a Parasitic disease, it is not chronic. If you have had it "for years" you are dead.
If you have a lyme doctor treating you for it, he is a quack. trying to suck money out of your pocket. He needs hospital privileges, because that is where you are treated. This is a very serious illness when have it. It can be difficult to distinguish between Babesia and Plasmodium (especially P. falciparum) parasites and even between parasites and artifacts (such as stain or platelet debris). Your physician will send multiple samples to a reference laboratory confirm the diagnosis. Treatment includes dialysis and exchange transfusions as well as Quinine, IV anitbiotics (in a particular order)
Most people have antibodies for Babesiosis because we have all eaten beef, there are a few other "coinfections" that are the same way, We all have antibodies because we have been exposed. We have a lot of antiobdies because we have been exposed a lot.
The Band testing done to find these infections would also indicate that most of us have polio, chicken pox, mumps, measles, rubella, and just about any disease we have been vaccinated for. On more reason why we need to be careful of the pseudo-science called lyme literate.