Pharmacogenomics (PGx)
Statistics
Half of all nursing home residents take nine or more medications per day and experience a disproportionate number of medication-related issue, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Inappropriate polypharmacy — the use of excessive or unnecessary medications — increases the risk of adverse drug reactions (ADRs), including falls and cognitive impairment, harmful drug interactions, and drug-disease interactions.
More than 5 billion prescriptions are filled each year, response rates for many drugs are only 50-75%. It is estimated that ineffective medications produce an additional $528 billion in healthcare costs each year.
On February 28, 2022, a federal bipartisan legislation called the Right Drug Dose Now Act was introduced in Congress to address drug-gene interactions and enable the use of PGx testing to ensure that patients receive the most appropriate prescription medications based on their genetic makeups.
What are the Benefits of PGX
Pharmacogenomics (PGx) testing looks at specific genes and how the person’s body may metabolize and absorb medicines. Genes can influence how you process and respond to medications. Depending on your genetic makeup, some medications may work faster or slower, or produce more or fewer side effects.
The results can be used by the healthcare provider to:
• Determine which medications are most and least likely to be effective your residents
• Determine what the best dosage might be for them
• Predict whether they will have a serious side effect from a medication
• PGx is a clinical tool that helps healthcare providers move beyond the “one size fits all”
treatment strategy, to more personalized medicine
Summary
Pharmacogenomics testing can help a doctor create a road map for which drugs will be most effective for each individual patient. Pharmacogenomic testing can help inform dosing, possible side effects, or differences in effectiveness for people with certain gene variants. Patients are often prescribed medications with a one-size-fits-all approach, but DNA testing can ensure drugs are prescribed for maximum efficiency with minimal adverse effects. Pharmacogenomics allows medical providers to stop experimenting with different drugs and dosages, and prescribe the right drug the first time, every time.