Open AccessA retrospective analysis of the application of the Elecsys ® HIV combi PT assay in southern China
Author(s) -
Liang Shaocong,
Deng Guihua,
Zhou Shaosong,
Zeng Jing,
Tan Weiqing,
Yuan Xiaopeng
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of clinical laboratory analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.536
H-Index - 50
eISSN - 1098-2825
pISSN - 0887-8013
DOI - 10.1002/jcla.22287
Subject(s) - hiv screening , retrospective cohort study , medicine , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , cutoff , predictive value , gastroenterology , immunology , physics , syphilis , men who have sex with men , quantum mechanics
Background Fourth‐generation HIV assays have been implemented worldwide as a screening test for many years. Understanding the performance of fourth‐generation assay in low HIV prevalence region is pivotal to interpret the test result correctly. In this study, retrospective analysis was used to evaluate application of the Elecsys ® HIV combi PT assay. Methods A total of 85 043 specimens from a low prevalence setting were detected between June 2013 and October 2015. We evaluated the false‐positive rate ( FPR ), specificity, and positive predictive value ( PPV ). Results The specificity between male and female were 99.85% and 99.82%, respectively. The PPV on male (50.75%) was higher than female (17.05%) significantly, while the FPR was 0.15% and 0.18%. The gap between false‐positive (median: 1.83, [ IQR ]: 1.30, 3.38) and confirmed‐positive (median: 407.5, [ IQR ]: 184.2, 871.7) is enormous. The highest s/co ratio for false‐positive cases was 85.45, while the lowest s/co ratio for confirmed‐positive cases was 59.68. Various reasons were attributed to false‐positive cases. Conclusion Optimal cutoff value is needed to be set to reduce the false‐positive cases and predict the final status of HIV infection reliably. Retrospective analysis will help us to understand more about diagnosis of HIV .