DETECTION OF BORRELIA-BURGDORFERI BY DNA AMPLIFICATION IN SYNOVIAL TISSUE SAMPLES FROM PATIENTS WITH LYME ARTHRITIS

Objective. To compare the detection rates of chromosomal flagellin gen e from Borrelia burgdorferi in synovial tissue (ST) and synovial fluid (SF) using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques. Methods. B bur gdorferi DNA was sought in SF and ST from 12 consecutive patients with Lyme arthritis and from 29 patients with noninfectious diseases (cont rols). Results. No DNA amplification was observed in samples obtained from the 29 control patients, whereas B burgdorferi DNA was detected i n all ST and/or SF samples from the 12 patients with Lyme arthritis. R esults from 1 ST sample were not interpretable because of PCR inhibito rs. Among the 11 remaining patients, 10 had positive ST samples, where as only 4 had positive SF samples (P < 0.05). Conclusion. These data s uggest that detection of chromosomal B burgdorferi DNA may be more eff icient in ST than SF.