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Test Code VILO Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) Quantitative PCR, Blood

Important Note

Please see the HIV testing algorithm to the left, under 'Resources'.

Infectious

Specimen and Container/Tube

Specimen Type: Whole blood

Preferred Specimen: Lavender EDTA tube

Volume

Preferred Volume: 5 - 10 mL

Minimum Volume: 3 mL

Specimen Stability

Storage Temperature

Stability

Room temperature

(20 - 25°C)

24 hours

Refrigerated

(2 - 10°C)

 24 hours

Frozen

(-20°C)

not acceptable

Collection Instructions

Specimen Collection: Venipucture


Specimen Transport: Immediate

Specimen Handling and Transport Instructions

UCMC Onsite Instructions: Collect specimen per standard collection procedure and send to laboratory immediately. 

 

UCMC Offsite and UC MedLab Outreach Instructions: Collect specimen per standard collection procedure and send to laboratory immediately. If transport is delayed, refrigerate specimens prior to transport.

Rejection Criteria

  • Common specimen rejected situations include: incorrect specimen type, insufficient volume, incorrect collection container, missing or incomplete specimen identifiers, incorrect specimen transport, or specimens outside stability limits. 
  • Only one test request per day is accepted.
  • Whole blood/unspun samples greater than 6 hours will be rejected.
  • Cord blood and heel stick specimens will be rejected.

Reference Values

 

Analyte

Age

Sex

Reference Range

Negative

All

All

No HIV-1 RNA detected

Detection limit

All

All

 20 copies/mL

Quantitation Reportable Range

All

All

 20 - 6,000,000 cp/mL

Quantitation Reportable Range Log

All

All

 1.30 - 6.78 IU/mL
 

Turnaround Time

Turnaround times are relative to the time the specimen is received in the test laboratory. 

STAT Turnaround Time: not available

Routine Turnaround Time: 72 hours

Testing Schedule: Monday - Sunday

Clinical Indications

  • cobas® HIV-1 is not intended for use as a screening test for the presence of HIV-1 in donated blood or plasma, or as a diagnostic test to confirm the presence of HIV-1 infection.

  • Quantitation of HIV-1 RNA is dependent on the number of virus particles present in the samples and may be affected by sample collection methods

CPT Codes

87536

LOINC Codes

30687536

Methodology

Roche cobas® 6800 automated PCR

Synonyms/Keyword Search

HIV-1, HIV viral load, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, HIV-1 PCR, HIV-1 Quantitation, PCR, HIV-1 RNA, HIV-1 Viral Load

Last Review Date

09/05/2025