Meeting report on assessment of World Health Organization HIV drug resistance early warning indicators : report of the Early Advisory Indicator Panel meeting, 11-12 August 2011, Geneva, Switzerland.

In August 2011, an advisory panel review meeting was held in Geneva to consider revisions of the existing EWIs and associated targets. After a critical review of available medical literature using the GRADE methodology, recommendations were developed to simplify EWI definitions, account for implementation challenges, harmonize with other routinely reported indicators and adjust EWI definitions and targets based on new evidence. The revised recommended set of indicators which is designed to be implemented as a package includes a total of five indicators, one of which (viral load suppression at 12 months), is considered conditional and is designed to be implemented only at clinics where routine viral load monitoring is performed for all patients 12 months after ART initiation.