CD57 Natural Killer Cells Chronic Lyme Disease

Lymphocyte Test CD57+ EDTA.
The analysis CD57 lymphocytes must be requested using the code CD578. The material may be EDTA or Hb heparin.

Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria Borrelia.

This test measures via antigens the number of CD57 lymphocytes, a particular type of blood cells that help clear infections. Chronic Lyme patients in particular are said to have a low CD57 cell count and with antibiotic treatment and recovery from the disease, this number would go back up, according to some ILADS doctors. An LLMD Lyme literate medical doctor, is defined as a physician who has done a scientific publication on Lyme.

Also in several other diseases the CD57 cell count can be lowered and there are also some chronic Lyme patients who do have a normal or high CD57 score.

The CD57+ cells give an indication about the degree of immunosuppression of chronic Lyme disease. Based on the current literature, CD57+ cells are predictive laboratory parameters during and after treatment of chronic Lyme disease.

Clinical studies and case reports have shown that chronic Lyme infections are often associated with changes in the cellular immune system. Evidence for this is a reduced number of Natural Killer cells (NK / CD3-CD56 +), but in particular a reduced absolute number of activated NK cells (CD3-CD56 + CD57 +). While acute Borrelia burgdorferi infections and other diseases have normal CD57 values, chronic Lyme patients often have less than 100 CD57 cells/µl.

According to scientific studies, a suppressed CD57 cell count is mainly observed in patients in whom the nervous system is affected, rather than in patients in whom the tissue or skeletal system is affected.

The decrease in CD57 cells persists until improvements in symptoms are achieved as a result of antibiotics and other forms of treatment.
Conversely, decreased CD57 is considered a parameter for an active chronic Borrelia infection and a possible indication that therapy has not yet taken hold.

For more information see our blog.

The result of this test will take a little longer.