Prescription drug use in the United States has steadily increased. Following this trend, pharmacotherapy for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders has also increased over the past several decades. According to a 2012 national survey, antidepressants were the third most commonly mentioned drug by therapeutic category at office visits. The benefit of prescription drug use has been established in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders; however, physicians and medical professionals face challenges in establishing the best medication options for each individual patient. One factor that can contribute to inter-individual differences in drug response is how the drug is metabolized, which is influenced by genetic factors. In recognition of the important role drug metabolisms plays in drug response, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) currently includes pharmacogenomics biomarker information on product labels for 30 medications in the therapeutic area of psychiatry. The focus of this report is to assess the evidence that supports the use of GeneSight Psychotropic as a decision-making tool that identifies how gene and allele variants may impact a patient’s drug metabolism.
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