Pharmacogenetic testing in psychiatry and neurology: an overview of reviews

Pharmacogenomics. 2021 Jun;22(8):505-513. doi: 10.2217/pgs-2020-0187. Epub 2021 May 11.

Abstract

Pharmacogenetic testing is available to healthcare professionals to guide drug selection and prevent adverse events. However, its implementation in the clinical practice of psychiatry/neurology still has barriers, mainly due to a lack of evidence. We conducted a literature search on Cochrane Library, Embase and Pubmed, from their inception to 18 June 2020. We included 16 published systematic reviews. The most studied drug categories were anticonvulsants and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors associated with human leukocyte antigen and cytochrome P450 genes (HLA-A, HLA-B, CYP2C9, CYP2D6, CYP2C19), classified as critically low quality/low quality. There is a need for more robust studies with adequate design to assess the potential benefits of adopting pharmacogenetics in health systems and services.

Keywords: evidence-based medicine; neurology; pharmacogenetics; psychiatry; systematic review.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Anticonvulsants / therapeutic use
  • Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / genetics
  • Humans
  • Neurology / methods*
  • Pharmacogenetics / methods
  • Pharmacogenomic Testing / methods*
  • Psychiatry / methods*
  • Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / therapeutic use

Substances

  • Anticonvulsants
  • Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors
  • Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System