[Sensitivity of HIV infection screening assays in 2001].
Early detection of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is critical for clinical diagnosis and treatment of patients, as well as for ensuring the safety of blood products. Recently, fourth-generation HIV screening assays have been developed with the objective to offer an increased sensitivity by combining detection of anti-HIV antibodies (Ab) with detection of the p24 viral antigen (Ag). Eight different HIV assays commercially available in France (five fourth-generation HIV screening assays and three third-generation HIV Ab-only assays) were compared in a broad number of seroconversion panels (n = 27). This extensive analysis highlights: 1) the importance of p24 Ag detection for early diagnosis; 2) the improved sensitivity of fourth-generation assays over Ab-only tests. In conclusion, these results emphasize the detection limitations of the different assays and suggest improvements for future HIV screening assays.
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Laboratoire Claude-Lévy (LCL), 78, avenue de Verdun, 94200 Ivry-sur-Seine, France.
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D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24 / Q000032:analysis; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000592:standards; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D015483:HIV Antibodies; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24
Performances des tests de dépistage de l'infection par le VIH en 2001.