title: Interpretation of real-time PCR results for hepatitis C virus RNA when viral load is below quantification limits.
abstract: Hepatitis C virus RNA quantification results obtained in 18 laboratories using real-time PCR methods with 10 negative samples and 22 sample dilutions (viral loads of 0.5 to 500 IU/ml) showed a score of correct results of up to 93.5%. However, 55.6% of the laboratories did not follow the recommendations for the interpretation of their results, leading to ambiguous conclusions.
authors.affiliation: Centre National de Référence pour les Hépatites B et C en Transfusion, Département des Agents Transmissibles par le Sang, Institut National de la Transfusion Sanguine, Paris, France. slaperche@ints.fr
authors.forename: Syria
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Laperche
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bouchardeau
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: André-Garnier
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Thibault
authors.forename: Anne-Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Roque-Afonso
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Trimoulet
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Colimon
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Duverlie
authors.forename: Hélène
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Leguillou-Guillemette
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lunel
authors.forename: Magali
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bouvier-Alias
authors.forename: Jean-Michel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Pawlotsky
authors.forename: Cécile
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Henquell
authors.forename: Evelyne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schvoerer
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Stoll-Keller
authors.forename: Marie-Laure
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Chaix
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Branger
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gaudy-Graffin
authors.forename: Arielle R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Rosenberg
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pozzetto
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vallet
authors.forename: Yazid
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Baazia
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Izopet
authors.forename: Jean-Jacques
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lefrère
mesh_terms: D003661:Decision Support Techniques; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*; D019562:Viral Load / Q000379:methods*; D014773:Virology / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral