New Test Helps Choose Depression Medications
When a person has been diagnosed as suffering from depression the first step is to find the right antidepressant for them to help rebalance the chemicals that are out of sync. The problem is that there are so many different pills available and the only way to find the right own has always been by trial and error. Sometimes the health care provider is lucky and the first medication tired is successful. But more often than not this is not the case and numerous medications must be tired. Sometimes they fail because they have too many side effects that the patient cannot deal with. Other times it is because the medication simply does not work. The process can be slow as each new medication is often tried for at least a few weeks at a time.
That is starting to be a problem of the past as new medical technology has brought about new tests that may save a lot of this wasted time. A relatively new field of study, called pharmacogenomics, it is the study of how an individual’s body metabolizes medications. This type of medication is also known as personalized medicine. These tests can determine how a person’s body will absorb the medications by evaluating certain genes.
This new system of testing genes has had some very positive results. The particular test is called the CYP450 test. It tests the genes that will naturally absorb the medication to see tract signals from the enzymes which will tell the doctors which antidepressants will be absorbed better. Researchers know that every person reacts differently to different combinations of medications. That is why a testing system like this can prove to be very useful in the long run. Even family members may have different reactions.
The problem with antidepressants can be the rate of absorption. If it is metabolized too quickly then it is through the body and then eliminated too fast and so does not give the patient enough relief. This way it is unlikely for there to be enough benefit to control the depressive feelings. If the medication is absorbed too slowly there reverse will be true. The medication will remain in the body for longer than it should. It can therefore begin to build up in the body and potentially could cause a problem of toxicity. Or it could cause other problems. Either way medication that could react improperly is not a good idea. That is why this process could make all the difference in the way medication is planned for.
If you are a diagnosed as a depressant and medication is recommended and your health care provider suggests having the CYP450 test you should seriously this option. This test cannot tell which ones will be good for you but will eliminate the ones that will not work. It is only a blood test and the results of that test could save months of poor prescription choices and side effects with little positive results on alleviating the depression.
