title: Quantitative nucleic acid amplification methods and their implications in clinical virology.
abstract: Recently, a number of techniques have been approved for quantification of viral nucleic acids in clinical samples. Viral load (VL) tests have considerable importance in the management of patients and are widely used in routine diagnosis. In clinical virology, VL testing are important to monitor the antiviral treatment, to initiate preemptive therapy, to understand pathogenesis, and to evaluate the infectivity. These tests have now become a part of many diagnostic and treatment guidelines. Considering the various challenges for in-house viral testing related to the standardization, validation, and precision; they are gradually being replaced by the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) cleared tests. This review summarizes the various viral quantification methods and also discusses the clinical applicability of these in human immunodeficiency virus, Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, Cytomegalovirus, and Epstein Barr virus infected patients. Further the challenges and future perspectives of VL testing have also been discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Mini P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Shipra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Galhotra
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Karnika
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Saigal
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Archit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Radha Kanta
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Ratho
keywords: Diagnosis; monitoring; preemptive therapy; viral diseases; viral load