Realizing the potential of routine viral load testing in sub-Saharan Africa
Journal of the International AIDS Society - "The global HIV response has been remarkably successful. More than 19 million persons living with HIV (PLHIV) have accessed life-saving antiretroviral therapy (ART) and the annual number of HIV-related deaths and new HIV infections have both plummeted. As countries strive to reach the UNAIDS 90:90:90 targets (i.e. for 90% of PLHIV to be aware of their diagnosis, 90% of those who know their diagnosis to receive ART, and 90% of those on ART to have durable viral load suppression, new guidelines, tools and implementation strategies are vitally important.
Viral load measurement is a critical tool to assess the impact of HIV treatment efforts, and is now endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the primary methodology for monitoring response to ART. This recommendation is based on research demonstrating that viral suppression is associated with decreased HIV disease progression and mortality among PLHIV, and the prevention of HIV transmission to sexual partners." (Photo: A patient receives an HIV test/World Bank Photo Collection/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)