Open AccessPoint-of-Care Viral Load Testing for Sub-Saharan Africa: Informing a Target Product Profile
Author(s) -
Andrew Phillips,
Valentina Cambiano,
Fumiyo Nakagawa,
Deborah Ford,
Tsitsi Apollo,
Joseph Murungu,
Christine Rousseau,
Geoff P. Garnett,
Peter Ehrenkranz,
Loveleen BansiMatharu,
Lara Vojnov,
Zachary Katz,
Rosanna W. Peeling,
Paul Revill
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
open forum infectious diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.546
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2328-8957
DOI - 10.1093/ofid/ofw161
Subject(s) - viral load , medicine , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , antiretroviral therapy , point of care testing , robustness (evolution) , point of care , load testing , test (biology) , reliability engineering , intensive care medicine , virology , immunology , computer science , nursing , biology , software engineering , engineering , paleontology , biochemistry , gene
Point-of-care viral load tests are being developed to monitor patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in sub-Saharan Africa. Test design involves trade-offs between test attributes, including accuracy, complexity, robustness, and cost. We used a model of the human immunodeficiency virus epidemic and ART program in Zimbabwe and found that the attributes of a viral load testing approach that are most influential for cost effectiveness are avoidance of a high proportion of failed tests or results not received, use of an approach that best facilitates retention on ART, and the ability to facilitate greater use of differentiated care, including through expanding coverage of testing availability.
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