Drug Prescribing and Outcomes After Pharmacogenomic Testing in a Developmental and Behavioral Health Pediatric Clinic.

OBJECTIVE To describe drug prescribing and outcomes after pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing in children with developmental and/or behavioral disorders. METHODS This is a single-clinic retrospective analysis of patients aged 5 to 17 years with documented behavioral and/or development disorder(s) and having received PGx testing between May 2015 and May 2017. The primary endpoint was frequency of PGx-guided medication changes after testing. Secondary endpoints included frequency of medications in each category from the PGx report (use as directed, use with caution, and use with increased caution), changes in therapy within each category, frequency and type of actionable genes, symptomatic improvement, and frequency of medication changes up to 6 months after PGx-guided therapy. RESULTS Of 200 patients, 75% were male, 78% were white, 83% had attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and 45% had anxiety, and their mean age was 10 years. Most common reasons for ordering PGx testing were lack of response (83%) and/or adverse events (42%). Approximately 84% had PGx-guided medication change(s) after testing. At baseline, 50% of medications were categorized in "use as directed," 40% in "use with caution," and 11% in "use with increased caution." After testing, 8%, 29%, and 30% of medications in "use as directed," "use with caution," and "use with increased caution" categories were discontinued; 85% were added or continued from "use as directed" category. The most common actionable genes were ADRA2A (47%), COMT (22%), and CYP2D6 (20%). Sixty percent were on the same medication(s) suggested by the PGx report 6 months later, and 64% had provider-documented symptomatic improvement. CONCLUSION Pharmacogenomic testing may affect drug prescribing and clinical outcomes in a pediatric behavioral health clinic.