Special Focus: Pharacogenomics: Adoption of Pharmacogenomic Testing in Psychiatry Slow; Experts Point to Lack of Evidence, Cost-Effectiveness
Despite the hope that personalized medicine can improve care in a notoriously difficult to treat patient population, pharmacogenomic testing in the field of psychiatry is still characterized by clinicians as an emerging technology. Commercially available tests developed by startup personalized medicine companies are emerging, as are in-house tests developed by large hospitals and laboratories. But clinical experts in the field say the tests, which are a big improvement over trial-and-error medication selection, have not yet fulfilled the dreams of truly personalized psychiatric care. “The tests available to individual practitioners really do seem to have value, but where we are at the present time is that tests are really aiding drug selection based on pharmacokinetics. Current testing cannot yet predict responsiveness, but they really are a substantial step forward,” says Daniel Hall-Flavin, M.D., an assistant professor of psychiatry at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., who has participated in translational research efforts with pharmacogenomic firm AssureRx (Mason, Ohio). Trials of these early versions of pharmacogenomic tests demonstrate that these assays can enhance the safety of prescribing psychotropic medications by cutting potential adverse drug reactions and can decrease the time and cost in initiating successful treatment, particularly for patients with depression. However, […]
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