HIV- RNA and HIV DNA PCR tests are different.
The difference is in the number of viral particles
they are able to detect. The HIV PCR
sensitivity limit per individual sample is approximately 50-2000
copies/mL according to the different methodologies used.
This test
detects acute infection prior to seroconversion. It
does so by
performing
HIV-PCR test in association to the HIV-ELISA
antibodies test.
The PCR tests is approved
by the FDA only for people with AIDS and taking
medications but has become popular also as a
diagnostic tool.
That is the reason why
we associate a free HIV ELISA antibodies.
Earlier diagnosis leads to earlier referral for appropriate
care and preservation of health.
If the
test is negative the person is almost 100% sure
to be negative for the presence of HIV1 viruses.
A
recent study
has shown that this test is able to detect the
presence of HIV virus 6 to 42 days prior to a
positive HIV-ELISA antibodies test and is
conclusive (almost 100%) 28 days from exposure.
HIV - PCR
stands for
HIV- Polymerase
Chain Reactionand is
also known as
Viral
Load
testing
because it looks for the
presence of the Immuno Deficiency Virus in your blood.Contrary to the HIV-Elisa Antibodies test
the HIV-PCR is the direct measurement of
the amount of
HIV particles present in the blood. The
Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology amplifies even
the smallest amount of Virus particle millions of time, and since this test identifies and
measures the genetic material (rDNA) resulting from the virus infection, is
also known as Nucleic Acid test.
Increased
awareness of infection status combined with appropriate
preventive counseling may significantly reduce the
unknowing spread of infection.
Two Studies published in the New England Journal of
Medicine analyzed the cost-effectiveness of HIV
screening.
Both used different models but reached the same
conclusions
"routine Screening is justified, beneficial, and
cost-effective."
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
estimates that 40,000
new cases of HIV transmission occur every year.
Several studies have suggested that individuals with
primary
infection may he significant contributors to the
spread of HIV.
These individuals have very high HIV viral load in
blood and
semen, are extremely infectious, and are usually
unaware of their HIV status.
Although the majority of people
are symptomatic with an illness resembling infectious mononucleosis or
influenza and a good percentage of these people present for care at
health care facilities with "acute retroviral syndrome" (ARS), some people
have no clinical symptoms.
Several
studies have suggested that individuals with primary
infection
may he significant contributors to the spread of
HIV. These individuals have very high HIV viral load
in blood and semen, are extremely infectious, and
are usually unaware of their HIV status. In acute HIV infection and prior to seroconversion
the viral burden is very high (10 to >1.000.000 copies/mL).
The period
after infection with HIV
but before the
development of detectable antibodies is a period of active HIV
replication and transient immune suppression. The number of HIV
viruses rises rapidly in the plasma, often reaching levels in excess
of 1 million copies per milliliter, with widespread dissemination
into lymphoid organs throughout the body.
By identifying highly contagious
individuals, this test provides a public health targeting
opportunity for HIV prevention.
In acute HIV infection
and prior to seroconversion the viral burden is
very high
(10-107
copies/mL). Therefore the use
of nucleic acid testing helps in reducing
the test cost per sample.
The sensitivity limit per individual sample
is approximately 2000 copies/mL.
The PCR
tests is approved by the FDA only for people with
AIDS and taking medications but has become popular
also as a diagnostic tool. The test may be falsely
negative in people with HIV if the infection is so
recent (less than 28 days old) that virus has not
yet begun to produce detectable quantities of
itself, or if a person is controlling the infection
spontaneously or using the newly potent
anti-retroviral medications and has brought the
infection under control.
