New method helps ID Lyme disease in early stages

In Colorado, researchers found a way to tell Lyme disease apart from the very similar southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI). Using mass spectrometry, they were able to identify differences in the two diseases, which is especially important since most U.S. lab tests aren’t sensitive enough to identify Lyme disease with accuracy when it is in the early stages. The new method, however, has an accuracy of up to 98 percent, which they hope will help more doctors detect Lyme disease early on in their patients. The longer patients wait for treatment, the more severe the Lyme disease symptoms and tougher they are to manage.