Knowledge and perspectives on pharmacogenomic-guided antidepressant treatment among psychiatrists and primary care practitioners

Objectives – This study compared psychiatrist and primary care practitioner (PCP) perspectives on pharmacogenomics and barriers to its use in guiding antidepressant prescribing. Methods – Psychiatrists and PCPs across the USA were invited to complete an anonymous 31-item online survey that collected demographic information, knowledge and experience with pharmacogenomics, and attitudes and perspectives on the clinical use of pharmacogenomics. Results – Psychiatrists (n = 36) reported greater familiarity and experience with antidepressant pharmacogenomics than PCPs (n = 11); however, both lacked familiarity with implementing pharmacogenomic testing and related clinical resources. Identified barriers to testing among psychiatrists focused predominantly on concerns over clinical utility and applicability to patients. The reported barriers among PCPs were lack of test information and lack of knowledge on how to order and how to utilize pharmacogenomic results. However, all respondents supported multigene panel-based pharmacogenomic testing and including all potentially impacted medications in test reports. Conclusion – Despite a low overall response rate and disproportionate survey participation between provider types, this study identified knowledge and experience as current barriers for psychiatrists and PCPs to implement pharmacogenomic-guided antidepressant prescribing. Importantly, both clinician groups indicated interest in pharmacogenomics education, professional support for implementation, and panel-based pharmacogenomic testing with comprehensive medication management reporting.