Understanding Pharmacogenomics for Older People

Pharmacogenomics is a big word that means looking at how a person's genes affect how they respond to medications. This can make a big difference for older adults when they are getting treated with drugs. It's important because older people often react differently to medicines, which can lead to problems and side effects.

Why Pharmacogenomics is Helpful for Older Patients:

1. Fewer Bad Reactions to Drugs:

   • About 30% of older adults who go to the hospital do so because of bad reactions to medications. This shows us how important it is to tailor treatments for them.
   • Testing for genetic differences can help spot how someone might react to certain drugs, which lowers the chance of bad side effects.

2. Better Effect of Medications:

   • As people age, how their body absorbs, spreads, breaks down, and removes drugs can change. This might mean medicines don’t work as well.
   • Research shows that understanding genetics can help make medicines work better. For example, a drug called clopidogrel is not as effective in some patients because of certain genetic traits.

3. Saving Money:

   • Tailoring medicine to each patient can help lower healthcare costs. When people avoid bad reactions to drugs, it can decrease the number of hospital visits. In the U.S., bad drug reactions in older adults cost over $20 billion a year!
   • One study found that using genetic testing could save up to $4.3 billion a year by stopping treatments that don't work for certain patients.

4. Safer Choices for Multiple Medications:

   • Older adults often take many medications, which can increase risks for drug interactions, or when one medicine affects another.
   • Pharmacogenomics helps doctors choose the right medications and dosages for those taking multiple drugs. Testing can help reduce hospital visits related to these interactions.

Some Eye-Opening Stats:

• Older adults make up only 13% of the U.S. population, but they spend about 34% of all money on prescription medications.
• It's believed that half of all older adults take at least five different medications at the same time. This raises the risk of experiencing negative side effects.

In summary, using pharmacogenomic testing in healthcare can really help improve medication plans for older adults. It allows for safer and more effective treatment based on each person's unique genetics.