Commercial pharmacogenetic-based decision-support tools in psychiatry

Abstract

Despite a compendium of pharmacotherapies available for treating psychiatric illnesses, suboptimal response to these therapies is typical and thought to be in part a result of genetic variation. This notion has sparked a personalised psychiatry movement, which has in turn led to the development of several commercial pharmacogenetic-based decision support tools marketed to psychiatrists as an alternative to typical, trial-and-error, prescribing. However, there is considerable uncertainty about the validity and usefulness of these tools and whether there is sufficient evidence to support their adoption. In this Personal View, we provide an introduction to these tools and assess their potential usefulness in psychiatry practice. We conclude with clinical considerations and development strategies for improving future pharmacogenetic-based decision support tools for clinical use.