| Summary: | Nucleic Acid Technology (NAT), introduced in the late 90s, is a molecular amplification method that can be used for the diagnosis and management of patients with infectious diseases. NAT test results are obtained quicker and are quantified, providing great.er information than the positive/negative results available from traditional techniques. However, NATs arc technically demanding, susceptible to contamination and hence results from associated diagnostic tests may be inaccurate. External Quality Assessment (EQA) services are programmes developed to assess and advance the quality performance of laboratories that use NAT kits to diagnose, manage and control human diseases. Quality Control for Molecular Diagnostics (QCMD) , an organisation that provides EQA, uses proficiency panels designed with samples containing no , weak, medium and strong microbial loads. The panels are distributed to participating laboratories who analyse them knowing the pathogen but blind to the microbial load.
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