Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27992495›Full record

ArticlePloS one2016

Options to Expand HIV Viral Load Testing in South Africa: Evaluation of the GeneXpert® HIV-1 Viral Load Assay.

Natasha Gous, Lesley Scott, Leigh Berrie, Wendy Stevens

Abstract readEvaluation Study
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
30citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

30 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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  4. Pooled it
  5. Timeliness of Point-of-Care Viral Load Results Improves Human Immunodeficiency Virus Monitoring in Nigeria.Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2023
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  16. Evaluation of the performance of the Cepheid Xpert HIV-1 Viral Load Assay for quantitative and diagnostic uses.Journal of clinical virology : the official publication of the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology · 2020
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Natasha GousDepartment of Haematology and Molecular Medicine, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Lesley ScottDepartment of Haematology and Molecular Medicine, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Leigh BerrieNational Priority Program of the National Health Laboratory Services, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Wendy StevensDepartment of Haematology and Molecular Medicine, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundExpansion of HIV viral load (VL) testing services are required to meet increased targets for monitoring patients on antiretroviral treatment. South Africa currently tests >4million VLs per annum in 16 highly centralised, automated high-throughput laboratories. The Xpert HIV-1 VL assay (Cepheid) was evaluated against in-country predicates, the Roche Cobas Taqmanv2 and Abbott HIV-1RT, to investigate options for expanding VL testing using GeneXpert's random access, polyvalent capabilities and already established footprint in South Africa with the Xpert MTB/RIF assay (207 sites). Additionally, the performance of Xpert HIV-1VL on alternative, off-label specimen types, Dried Blood Spots (DBS) and whole blood, was investigated.

methodPrecision, accuracy (agreement) and clinical misclassification (1000cp/ml) of Xpert HIV-1VL plasma was compared to Taqmanv2 (n = 155) and Abbott HIV-1 RT (n = 145). Misclassification of Xpert HIV-1VL was further tested on DBS (n = 145) and whole blood (n = 147).

resultsXpert HIV-1VL demonstrated 100% concordance with predicate platforms on a standardised frozen, plasma panel (n = 42) and low overall percentage similarity CV of 1.5% and 0.9% compared to Taqmanv2 and Abbott HIV-1 RT, respectively. On paired plasma clinical specimens, Xpert HIV-1VL had low bias (SD 0.32-0.37logcp/ml) and 3% misclassification at the 1000cp/ml threshold compared to Taqmanv2 (fresh) and Abbott HIV-1 RT (frozen), respectively. Xpert HIV-1VL on whole blood and DBS increased misclassification (upward) by up to 14% with increased invalid rate. All specimen testing was easy to perform and compatible with concurrent Xpert MTB/RIF Tuberculosis testing on the same instrument.

conclusionThe Xpert HIV-1VL on plasma can be used interchangeably with existing predicate platforms in South Africa. Whole blood and DBS testing requires further investigation, but polyvalency of the GeneXpert offers a solution to extending VL testing services.

Indexed as

AdultAntiretroviral Therapy, Highly ActiveFemaleHIV-1HIV InfectionsHumansMaleMass ScreeningMiddle AgedMolecular Diagnostic TechniquesRNA, ViralSensitivity and SpecificitySouth AfricaSpecimen HandlingViral LoadRNA, Viral

Identifiers

PMID27992495
PMCPMC5161463

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.