TORONTO, Dec. 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As we head into the winter months, Canadians are doing everything they can protect themselves from the risk of getting sick. It turns out that if you DO find yourself in hospital, you may face a different set of risks – the risk of receiving the wrong medication based on your genetics. Now, a new test can help.
- Those admitted to hospital stand to be prescribed multiple medications, many of which may cause overlapping side effects and unnecessary harm.
- Even under “non-pandemic” circumstances, adverse drug events:
- are the #4 cause of death in Canada
- cause 1/3rd of hospitalizations and 20% of in-hospital injury/deaths
- significantly lengthen hospital stays for those admitted
- The effectiveness and safety of many medications you can expect to receive in hospital are affected by genetics; in fact, up to 80% of adverse events are estimated to be the result of inherited genetic variations that people unknowingly carry.
Genetic variations that affect how individuals respond to medications are not uncommon, according to Dr. Kathy Siminovitch – Chief Scientific Advisor to Inagene Diagnostics; “More than 98% of us unknowingly carries gene variants that will cause us to have an unexpected reaction to one or more commonly used drugs, either a lack of, or reduced clinical effect, or worse - unexpected, potentially serious side effects. Finding the best treatments and doses for every individual is a challenging process that can be greatly facilitated by incorporating genetic information so as to achieve the best possible outcome.”
Now a new innovation called “pharmacogenetic testing” promises to significantly reduce the time and risk involved in finding the right drug and dose through medication “trial and error.” Inagene has introduced a simple cheek swab test that helps doctors predict how individuals will respond to commonly used drugs before they are administered. The test is ordered online and done at home, with results ready to share with prescribers within 7 days.
A recent study confirmed that 90% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 end up receiving at least one medication that is affected by “pharmacogenetics,” and almost a quarter receive four or more. Because very ill patients cannot afford treatment failure or adverse effects, quickly finding the most effective and safe treatments and doses is critical. The authors concluded that having pharmacogenetic test results to guide treatment would have provided the opportunity to improve clinical care for nearly all individuals hospitalized with COVID‐19 by helping to guide clinicians to the most optimal drugs and doses, while avoiding the rest.
Inagene Diagnostics Inc. is a CLIA accredited Canadian pharmacogenetic testing company located in Toronto. Inagene’s Personalized Insights™ tests focus on providing comprehensive and reliable genetic tests to guide drug section and treatment. Learn more at inagene.com.
References:
- https://inagene.com/pages/precisionrx
- https://ascpt.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cts.12919
- https://www.modernhealthcare.com/clinical/drug-gene-testing-could-give-experts-insight-covid-19-treatment
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41525-020-00143-y
For all inquiries contact:
Nancy White
CEO Inagene Diagnostics Inc.
customerservice@inagene.com